Serious Fraud Office

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Solicitor-General pursuant to the answer of 1 December 2005, Official Report, column 731W, on the Serious Fraud Office, if he will place in the Library the paper commissioned by the Attorney General from the Serious Fraud Office on the policy and legislative changes they thought would assist them in the investigation and prosecution of overseas corruption offences.

Mike O'Brien: Further to my answer of 1 December 2005 a consultation paper was issued on 8 December 2005 by the Home Office entitled "Reform of the Prevention of Corruption Acts and SFO Powers in cases of bribery of foreign officials". This reflects submissions made to me by the Director of the Serious Fraud Office. A copy of the consultation document can be found at:
	www.homeoffice.gov.uk/documents/2005-cons-bribery?version=1

"Day in the Life"

Michael Penning: To ask the Prime Minister what costs were incurred at public expense in the production of the film "Day in the Life".

Tony Blair: The production of the film "Day in the Life" cost £900.
	So far nearly 55,000 people have downloaded the film via the Downing street website. The film was also available to download on the Sky and BBC News websites.

UK Overseas Territories

Michael Weir: To ask the Prime Minister what powers of intervention his Government have over the domestic monetary and fiscal policies of (a) Guernsey, (b) Jersey, (c) the Isle of Man, (d) the Falkland Islands, (e) Gibraltar, (f) Saint Helena, (g) Anguilla, (h) Montserrat, (i) Bermuda, (j) the British Virgin Islands, (k) Turks and Caicos Islands and (l) the Cayman Islands.

Tony Blair: .

Tenants

Kate Hoey: To ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners what safeguards are employed by the Commissioners to ensure that personal information on Church Commissioners' tenants is not passed to third parties; what measures are in place to provide redress when such information is passed on; and what disciplinary measures are in place relating to staff misuse of tenants' personal information.

Stuart Bell: The Commissioners seek to follow best practice regarding the maintenance and use of tenants' personal information, including the sharing of information with third parties where properly necessary. Some such information may be properly shared with professional advisors and managing agents.
	Any alleged instances of the improper sharing of tenants' personal information may be reported to the Commissioners' Chief Surveyor. The matter will then be investigated.
	All staff of the National Church Institutions are expected to observe standards of conduct and are subject to a formal disciplinary procedure where they fail to do so.

Legal Advice Direct

Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs if she will make a statement on the use of webcam technology as part of the online Legal Advice Direct project.

Bridget Prentice: The Legal Services Commission is currently in contract negotiations with the firm responsible for Legal Advice Direct. It would therefore be inappropriate to comment on their services at this stage as this could compromise impartiality during the tender process. In general I am keen to embrace and work with new technology in ensuring that services are delivered using methods that best meet client need while demonstrating cost effectiveness.

Bovine TB

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs 
	(1)  what size of culling area the Department is considering for the control of bovine TB; and what percentage of badgers would have to be despatched in those areas in order for the policy to be effective;
	(2)  what restrictions there will be on areas chosen for badger culling to control bovine TB; and whether restrictions will apply to locations where active study of the badger population is under way.

Ben Bradshaw: We are currently consulting both on the principle of culling badgers to control bovine tuberculosis (TB), and on how a badger cull might operate. Options are set out in the consultation document "Controlling the spread of bovine tuberculosis in cattle in high incidence areas in England: Badger Culling". These include possible culling areas ranging from 1 km to 3 km from an eligible farm's boundary to areas of 100 km 2 or more. Until the consultation is complete no decisions on culling badgers or the detail of how an effective cull would operate can be made.
	In deciding whether to introduce a badger culling policy we will take account of scientific evidence, the effectiveness of culling as a way of reducing bovine TB in cattle, and whether this is cost-effective. We will also consider what is practical and sustainable. Copies of the consultation document are available in the House Library or on the DEFRA website at:
	http://www.defra.gov.uk/corporate/consult/badgers-tbcontrols/index.htm
	The deadline for responses is 10 March 2006.

Carbon Dioxide Emissions

Philip Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the carbon dioxide emissions of (a) China, (b) India, (c) the US and (d) the UK were as most recently reported for the purposes of the Kyoto and Montreal agreements; and what projections have been made for that purpose for (i) 2020 and (ii) 2050 in each case.

Elliot Morley: The following table shows historical and projected carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) emissions in million tonnes of CO 2 (MtCO 2 ) for China, India, the USA and the UK.
	Emissions estimates are submitted under the United Nations framework convention on climate change (UNFCCC) which is the parent treaty for Kyoto protocol and the Montreal decisions, and also covers the US which has not ratified the protocol.
	The USA and UK are annexe 1 parties to the UNFCCC, and submit emissions inventories annually; the most recent year for which data are available is 2003. China and India are non-annexe 1 parties to the UNFCCC; the most recent data they have submitted is for 1994. The table also provides US and UK CO 2 emissions for 1994 from UNFCCC submissions for comparison. The data in the table cover all sectors including land-use, land-use change and forestry as reported by the country. The UK's data have been updated for consistency with the information provided in June 2005 to the European Union.
	The USA and UK have submitted projections to the UNFCCC for CO 2 emissions in 2020, but China and India have not. Projections to 2050 are not available for any of the countries, although the UK policy, as set out in the 2003 Energy White Paper, is to put ourselves on a path to a reduction of some 60 per cent. by 2050.
	
		
			  CO 2  emissions (MtCO 2 ) 
			 Country 1994 2003 2020 
		
		
			 China 2,666.0 n/a n/a 
			 India 793.5 n/a n/a 
			 US 4,327.8 5,013.5 6,763.0 
			 UK 559.8 555.9 524.7 
		
	
	n/a=Not available.
	The International Energy Agency provides estimates of projected emissions from use of fossil fuels which indicate, for China and India respectively, increases of about 210 per cent. and about 240 per cent. over the period 1994 to 2020. Fossil fuels account for the majority of CO 2 emissions but do not include land-use, land-use change and forestry which in 1994 reduced emission from China by about +5 per cent. and increased those of India by about 8 per cent.

Carbon Dioxide Emissions

Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what measures her Department is implementing to cut carbon emissions from transport; and what the percentage change in emissions from transport was between 2000 and 2005 (a) in total and (b) in each year.

Elliot Morley: The UK Government set out its policy on reducing greenhouse gas emissions from all sectors in its publication "Climate Change: The UK Programme" in 2000. The Climate Change Programme (CCP) is currently under review, and as part of this review the Government are considering the scope for additional policy measures to further reduce emissions from all sectors, including transport.
	The following tables contain carbon emissions from 2000 to 2003, the latest year for which published data is available, expressed as million tonnes of carbon (MtC) equivalent. Percentage changes are shown as a year-on-year change and as a total change from 2000 to 2003.
	The first table shows carbon emissions from domestic transport, which includes emissions from road, diesel rail, domestic aviation and domestic shipping. The second table shows carbon emissions from international shipping and international aviation; under guidelines agreed internationally, these emissions are not included in UK total emissions, but are estimated for information purposes and do not count towards the achievement of the UK's Kyoto target.
	
		Domestic transport
		
			  Total transport emissions (MtC) Percentage change between each year Percentage change in total (2000–03) 
		
		
			 2000 33.63 — — 
			 2001 33.50 -0.39 — 
			 2002 34.00 1 .49 — 
			 2003 34.34 1 .00 2.11 
		
	
	
		International aviation and shipping
		
			  Total transport emissions (MtC) Percentage change between each year Percentage change in total (2000–03) 
		
		
			 2000 9.81 — — 
			 2001 9.79 -0.20 — 
			 2002 9.35 -4.49 — 
			 2003 9.49 1 .50 -3.26

EC Water Framework Directive

Angela Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many and what proportion of lakes of more than one hectare in area in England and Wales have been designated as water bodies under the EC Water Framework directive.

Elliot Morley: 432 lakes were designated and reported to the European Commission in March 2005 as part of the first round of river basin district characterisation under the EC Water Framework directive. Of these 432, a total of 137 lakes were greater than 50 hectares in size and 295 lakes were less than 50 hectares in size (50 hectares being the minimum size threshold required for designation and reporting to the European Commission).
	There are 6,247 lakes of more than one hectare in England and Wales. 432 of these lakes were designated as water bodies under the Water Framework directive (WFD), and this equates to 6.9 per cent. of lakes of greater than one hectare.
	The Environment Agency and DEFRA are working with English Nature and Countryside Council of Wales to ensure that the designation of smaller waters under the WFD is in line with relevant EU WFD Common Implementation Strategy Guidance.

EC Water Framework Directive

Angela Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what percentage of length of rivers in England and Wales has been designated as water bodies under the EC Water Framework directive.

Elliot Morley: A total of 51,182.7 km of rivers were designated as water bodies in accordance with the EC Water Framework directive (WFD) and associated EU WFD Common Implementation Strategy Guidance, and reported to the European Commission in March 2005 as part of the first round of river basin characterisation. The reported length is approximately 31 per cent. of the total river network of 163,837km (at the scale of 1:50,000) which represents catchments greater than 10km2 as specified under the system A typology for rivers under the directive.
	As part of the refinement of characterisation, the Environment Agency and DEFRA are working with English Nature and Countryside Council of Wales to ensure that smaller waters are dealt with in accordance with the relevant EU WFD Common Implementation Strategy Guidance.

Rural Communities (East Yorkshire)

Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps her Department is taking to sustain rural communities in East Yorkshire.

Jim Knight: In its Rural Strategy 2004, the Government announced an ambitious and targeted set of priorities for rural communities and enhancing our natural environment, together with radical reforms for their delivery, all firmly within a sustainable development framework. Since the General Election in May we have reinforced those priorities through actions such as the establishment of the Affordable Rural Housing Commission, the announcement of a new Rural Social and Community funding programme and the introduction of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Bill. The Bill seeks, among other things, to establish both the Commission for Rural Communities-an expert adviser, advocate and watchdog for rural communities-and Natural England-a new integrated agency to conserve and enhance the natural environment.
	All of these activities will impact on East Yorkshire. In addition, the East Riding of Yorkshire benefits from being a LEADER+ rural development area and forms part of the Number Rural Pathfinder area for the Yorkshire and Humberside region.

Administrative Costs

Alex Salmond: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the administrative costs were of each non-departmental public body for which he has responsibility in the last year for which figures are available; what the total of such costs was in that year; and whether the costs are regarded for the purposes of public expenditure statistical analyses as (a) identifiable and (b) non-identifiable.

Don Touhig: The Ministry of Defence has six Executive non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) and 11 advisory NDPBs.
	Executive NDPB gross expenditure costs for reporting years 1999–2000 through to 2004–05 can be found in the supplementary annex to the Ministry of Defence annual report and accounts 2004–05 (http://www.mod.uk/publications/modara04–05/index.html). Figures given for each Executive NDPB are generally non-identifiable. Figures for the Fleet Air Arm Museum are identifiable.
	Administrative costs for MOD advisory NDPBs in 2004–05 are listed in the following table.
	
		
			£ 
			 Advisory NDPB Administrative costs Contract costs Total costs for 2004–05 
		
		
			 Animal Welfare Advisory Committee 6,665 0 6,665 
			 Defence Nuclear Safety Committee 34,808 0 34,808 
			 Nuclear Research Advisory Committee 18,169 0 18,169 
			 Defence Scientific Advisory Council 369,929 134,140 504,069 
			 Advisory Committee on Conscientious Objectors n/a n/a n/a 
			 Advisory Group on Medical Countermeasures 5,000 175,000 180,000 
			 Armed Forces Pay Review Body 92,056 0 92,056 
			 War Pensions Committee 38,507 0 38,507 
			 Dartmoor Steering Group 0 0 0 
			 National Employers Advisory board 21,300 0 21,300 
			 Review Board for Government Contracts 41,943 347,518 389,461 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Administrative costs may include staff fees, travel and subsistence claims, conferences and advertising.
	2. Advisory Committee on Conscientious Objectors has not met since 1996. There were no costs for 2004–05.
	3. The Dartmoor Steering Group incurs no costs. Members are voluntary and no expenses are claimed.

Iraq

Michael Ancram: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  how many of those suspected of committing a serious terrorism-related offence in (a) Iraq and (b) Afghanistan and detained by the British armed forces (i) have been extradited to another state and (ii) have been handed over to US authorities in Iraq since March 2003; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what the legal status is of those in British custody but not charged in (a) Iraq and (b) Afghanistan; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: British armed forces have neither extradited to another state nor handed over to US authorities in Iraq any detainees suspected of committing a serious terrorism-related offence in Afghanistan since March 2003. No one is currently held in British custody in Afghanistan.
	I refer the right hon. Gentleman to my answer of 9 January 2006, Official Report, columns 221–22W, which gives the numbers of those suspected of committing a serious terrorism-related offence who have been transferred into US custody in Iraq since 2003. British armed forces have not extradited to another state any detainees suspected of committing a serious terrorism-related offence in Iraq since March 2003.
	All internees in British custody in Iraq are held under the auspices of UN Security Council Resolution 1546 and Iraqi law.

PR Companies

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the public relations companies that have had contracts with (a) his Department, (b) his non-departmental public bodies, (c) his Department's Executive agencies and (d) other bodies funded by his Department and for which he is responsible since May 1997; and what work was undertaken by each.

Don Touhig: Ministry of Defence expenditure on external assistance, of which consultants employed to manage PR is part, is available in the Library of the House for years 1995–96 to 2004–05 contained in the documents "Expenditure On External Assistance for the MOD by TLB/Agency", and "Expenditure On External Assistance for the MOD by Category". Although this is broken down by various categories, my Department does not centrally record expenditure on external PR or other related agencies.

Departmental Expenditure

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport 
	(1)  how much was spent on advertising by (a) his Department and previous Departments with his Department's responsibilities, (b) each (i) non-departmental public body and (ii) Executive agency for which his Department is responsible and (c) independent statutory bodies, organisations and bodies financially sponsored by his Department in each year since May 1997;
	(2)  if he will list the public relations companies that have had contracts with (a) his Department and previous Departments with his Department's responsibilities, (b) each (i) non-departmental public body and (ii) Executive agency for which his Department is responsible and (c) independent statutory bodies, organisations and bodies financially sponsored by his Department since May 1997.

Karen Buck: The requested figures for advertising are set out as follows. However, records of costs from 1997–98 until 2001–02 are not readily available due to departmental re-organisations and could be obtained only at disproportionate costs.
	The majority of advertising investment by my central Department is in support of the THINK! Road Safety campaign. DVLA's main advertising expenditure has been to support the introduction of continuous registration.
	
		
			  2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 
		
		
			 DfT (Central) 10,446,000 10,427,000 9,021,724 
			 DVLA 8,066,000 10,177,000 9,370,000 
			 DSA 0 0 0 
			 HA 232,135 137,703 388,024 
			 VOSA 0 4,800 13,500 
			 MCA 52,292 33,619 49,495 
			 VCA 4,641 5,640 8,865 
			 SRA 95,000 505,000 25,000 
		
	
	Listing the public relations companies that have had contracts with (a) the Department and previous Departments with the Department's responsibilities, (b) each (i) non-departmental public body and (ii) Executive agency for which the Department is responsible and (c) independent statutory bodies, organisations and bodies financially sponsored by the Department since May 1997 could be produced only at disproportionate cost.

Departmental Expenditure

Pete Wishart: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the annual expenditure on training and development by (a) his Department and (b) each (i) non-departmental public body, (ii) Executive agency and (iii) other public body for which he is responsible in (A) Scotland, (B) Wales, (C) each of the English regions and (D) Northern Ireland was in each of the last three financial years; and what the planned expenditure is for 2005–06.

Karen Buck: The Department is committed to developing and improving the way it works to better achieve its business objectives. In order to do this it encourages all of its staff to take part in development activities that will improve their skills. In addition, certain staff maybe required to carry out mandatory training for particular duties.
	The information is as follows:
	
		
			 £ 
			  2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 (planned) 
		
		
			 Department for Transport (Central) 2,206,518 2,627,595 2,845,353 2,937,748 
			 Vehicle and Operator Services Agency — 1,071,251 714,289 869,879 
			 Highways Agency 2,500,359 3,140,799 3,185,269 3,053,454 
			 Driving Standards Agency 3,034,500 3,164,087 3,866,527 2,938,602 
			 Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency 1,418,000 1,684,000 2,140,000 3,843,000 
			 Maritime and Coastguard Agency 1,313,902 1,260,144 1,502,734 1,061,500 
			 Vehicle Certification Agency 111,000 146,000 127,000 150,000 
			 Government Car and Despatch Agency 60,409 80,393 56,237 51,645 
			 Railway Heritage Committee — — — 0 
			 Northern Lighthouse Board 182,270 222,851 159,978 185,000 
			 Trinity House Lighthouse Service 332,000 252,000 300,000 400,000 
			 Rail Passengers Council — — — 80,000 
			 Commission for Integrated Transport 5,952 8,481 9,610 7,500 
			 Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee — 2,036 6,183 1,985 
			 Traffic Commissioners and Deputies 0 0 0 0 
			 Strategic Rail Authority 407,435 650,603 919,024 973,634 
			 Standing Advisory Committee for Trunk Road Assessment 0 0 0 0 
		
	
	Financial records are not kept in a form which allows the Department to distinguish between country or region.
	The Rail Passenger Council was launched on 25 July 2005.
	The Railway Heritage Committee transferred to the Department for Transport on 21 November 2005.
	There are no records for the Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee prior to 2003–04.
	The Vehicle and Operator Services Agency was set up on 1 April 2003.
	Department for Transport (Central) was set up in May 2002 and the 2002–03 expenditure reflects that.
	There is no current Standing Advisory Committee for Trunk Road Assessment set up.

Light Rail

Alan Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much was given in subsidy by his Department to each light rail scheme currently in operation in each year since they commenced operation.

Alistair Darling: holding answer 11 November 2005
	The following light rail schemes are currently in operation in England.
	Blackpool Trams
	Croydon Tramlink
	Docklands Light Railway
	Manchester Metrolink
	Midland Metro
	Nottingham Express Transit
	Sheffield Supertram
	Tyne and Wear Metro
	Of these, only the Docklands Light Railway (DLR) and the Tyne and Wear Metro, have received operating subsidy from the Department for Transport or its predecessors and agencies.
	The operating subsidy provided is as follows.
	
		
			   £ million 
			  Docklands Light Railway Tyne and Wear Metro 
		
		
			 1987–88 2.126 — 
			 1988–89 2.840 — 
			 1989–90 5.420 — 
			 1990–91 9.999 — 
			 1991–92 19.759 — 
			 1992–93 15.342 — 
			 1993–94 14.399 — 
			 1994–95 15.656 — 
			 1995–96 13.249 — 
			 1996–97 19.530 8.795 
			 1997–98 6.716 8.619 
			 1998–99 6.343 8.630 
			 1999–2000 20.824 9.428 
			 2000–01 4.911 9.787 
			 2001–02 3.681 9.884 
			 2002–03 4.594 11.831 
			 2003–04 3.734 13.407 
			 2004–05 5.838 15.952 
		
	
	From 2000 the DLR subsidy has been paid by Transport for London (TfL).
	For the years prior to 1996–97 it is not possible to separately identify the Metro element within the overall support provided for heavy rail and Metro services in Tyne and Wear.
	The concessionaire of Croydon Tramlink, though it does not receive a revenue subsidy from central Government, is entitled to compensation on a 'no better, no worse' basis where fares policy enacted by the Mayor results in revenues per trip falling below those assumed in the 1996 financing plan which underpinned the Private Finance Initiative concession. It received compensation payments of £5.501 million in 2003–04 and £5.812 million (estimated) in 2004–05.
	The local authorities which are responsible for the running of these systems may make some contribution to their operating costs depending on the commercial arrangements with the system operators in each particular case. The Department does not hold any central records on this.
	The Department's capital expenditure on the construction of light rail systems in England since 1980 is as follows:
	
		
			  £ million 
			  Amount 
		
		
			 Tyne and Wear Metro 237.5 
			 Docklands Light Railway 335.5 
			 Manchester Metrolink 123.0 
			 Sheffield Supertram 220.0 
			 Midland Metro 80.0 
			 Croydon Tramlink 125.0 
			 Nottingham Express Transit 167.0 
		
	
	Normally this is paid as an upfront capital sum, except in the case of Nottingham Express Transit where the funding is in the form of annual availability payments.

Mobility and Inclusion Unit

Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will list the work completed to date by the Mobility and Inclusion Unit; and what issues the unit is working on.

Karen Buck: The Mobility and Inclusion Unit contributes to the delivery of the Department for Transport's aim to
	"make transport accessible and affordable to users of public transport, pedestrians and motorists, and to promote diversity in transport provision".
	Specifically the current focus of the unit is to:
	improve accessibility to transport, in particular through implementation of Disability Discrimination Act 1995 and 2005 provisions, and promote personal mobility;
	reduce social exclusion through implementation of recommendations of the Social Exclusion Unit report and promote social inclusion, in particular through implementation of the Race Equality Scheme;
	work with partners to reduce crime and fear of crime on the transport network.
	Details of the recent achievements and current objectives of the unit can be found in the Mobility and Inclusion Unit Business Plan 2005–06 which is available on the Department for Transport's website.

Cancer

John Baron: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people were diagnosed with (a) prostate cancer, (b) breast cancer, (c) bowel cancer, (d) lung cancer and (e) all other cancers in each of the last 10 years.

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 12 January 2006
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent question concerning how many people were diagnosed with (a) prostate cancer, (b) breast cancer, (c) bowel cancer, (d) lung cancer and (e) all other cancers in each of the last 10 years.(41166)
	The most recent available information on registration of newly diagnosed cases (incidence) is for the year 2003. Numbers of newly diagnosed cases of selected cancers registered in England and Wales between 1994 and 2003 are given in the attached table.
	
		Number of newly diagnosed cases of selected cancers registered in England and Wales, 1994–2003
		
			  Prostate(1) Breast(1) Colorectal (bowel)(1) Lung(1) All other cancers(2) 
			  Male Female Male Female Male Female Male Female 
		
		
			 1994 19,399 31,671 14,811 14,093 23,314 12,297 54,622 54,114 
			 1995 19,239 31,834 15,013 13,917 22,481 12,432 54,679 54,211 
			 1996 20,098 32,393 15,547 14,353 21,398 12,117 54,518 53,852 
			 1997 19,501 33,457 15,837 14,123 21,180 12,223 55,255 54,967 
			 1998 20,597 34,822 16,266 14,757 20,768 12,559 56,365 55,046 
			 1999 22,403 36,438 16,507 14,731 20,445 12,566 57,055 56,092 
			 2000 24,726 35,888 16,653 14,255 20,311 12,880 57,599 56,574 
			 2001 27,773 36,392 16,174 13,943 19,758 12,719 56,685 56,432 
			 2002 28,577 36,659 16,276 13,928 19,182 12,634 56,297 55,715 
			 2003 28,810 38,864 16,636 13,906 18,841 13,071 56,841 56,748 
		
	
	(1) Cancers registered in 1994 and 1995–2003 are, respectively, defined by codes in the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (IC.D9) and Tenth Revision (JCDI0). Therefore, prostate cancer is defined by codes 185 or C61, breast cancer by codes 174 or C50, colorectal (bowel) cancer by codes 153–154 or C18-C21 and lung cancer by codes 162 or C33-C34.
	(2) "All other cancers" are defined by codes 140–208 or COO-C97 (excluding non-melanoma skin cancer 173 or C44 and excluding the codes in footnote 1 above).
	Source:
	Office for National Statistics

Cancer

John Baron: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the mortality rate was for cancer in people under 75 years in each of the last 10 years.

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 12 January 2006
	As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking what the mortality rate was for cancer in people under 75 years in each of the last 10 years. (41169)
	The latest year for which data are available is 2004. Figures for deaths from cancer in people aged under 75 years are shown in the attached table for each year from 1995 to 2004.
	
		Age-standardised death rate(12) from cancer,(13) in persons aged under 75 years,(14) England, 1995 to 2004(15)
		
			 Calendar year Rate per 100,000 
		
		
			 1995(16) 144.7 
			 1996(16) 141.6 
			 1997(16) 137.3 
			 1998(16) 136.0 
			 1999(16) 132.0 
			 2000(16) 129.0 
			 2001 125.8 
			 2002 124.4 
			 2003 121.3 
			 2004 118.7 
		
	
	(12) Age-standardised to the European standard population.
	(13) The cause of death was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9) for the years 1995 to 2000, and the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD-10) for 2001 onwards. The codes used are listed as follows:
	Malignant neoplasms—ICD-9 140–208; ICD-10 C00 C97.
	(14) Data exclude deaths at age under 28 days.
	(15) Figures are based on deaths occurring in each calendar year.
	(16) The introduction of ICD-10 for coding cause of death in 2001 means that data for cancer are not completely comparable with data for years before this date. The figures presented in this table for the years 1993 to 2000 have been adjusted using comparability ratios to be comparable with ICD-10.
	The effect of the change in classification in 2001 on deaths from all cancer and cancer by site is described in an article published in August 2004.*
	* Brock A, Griffiths C, Rooney C (2004) The effect of the introduction of ICD-10 on cancer mortality trends in England and Wales "Health Statistics Quarterly" 23, 7–17.

Departmental Expenditure

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much his Department has spent on (a) online and (b) non-online self assessment in each year since 1997; and how much was spent on (i) set up and maintenance of the website, (ii) advertising and (iii) investigation of fraud and error; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: The information requested is as follows:
	(i) The Inland Revenue's on-line service for self assessment tax returns went live in 2000–01 (on 3 July 2000). Costs provided are for set up and maintenance of that website based service.
	
		
			(i) Set up and maintenance of website 
		
		
			 1998–99 0 
			 1999–2000 0 
			 2000–01 7.4 
			 2001–02 7.3 
			 2002–03 10.0 
			 2003–04 6.5 
		
	
	(ii) In respect of costs of advertising attributable to self assessment may I refer the hon. Member back to the answers given to him on 18 July 2005, Official Report, column.1334W and 19 November 2003, Official Report, column 1093W and the reply to the hon. Member for West Dorset (Mr. Letwin) on 5 January 2004.
	(iii) HMRC do not separate the costs of compliance for online/non online filers. The information can be provided only at a disproportionate cost.

EU Agriculture Budget

Michael Gove: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what proportion of the EU's agriculture budget was spent on (a) direct payments, (b) market price support, (c) input subsidies and (d) export subsidies in the last period for which figures are available.

Ivan Lewis: In 2004, the EU spent a total of €43.7 billion under the "Agriculture" heading of the Financial Perspective. €29.9 billion (68 per cent.) was spent on direct payments and €8.5 billion (19 per cent.) on "interventions in agricultural markets", which broadly corresponds to market price support, of which €3.3 billion (8 per cent.) was for export subsidies (export subsidies are one of the tools used to support market prices). Input subsidies are not separately identified in the budget, but the OECD estimates that €14 billion was spent in the EU in 2004 on payments based on input use and input constraints in 2004, some of which was nationally funded, out of a total of €108 billion support provided to EU farmers by EU taxpayers and consumers.
	The EU's agriculture budget accounts for only part of EL market price support, the bulk of which is paid for by consumers. Fuller analysis can be found in DEFRA and HM Treasury's recent paper, "A Vision for the Common Agricultural Policy", in particular in Chapter 2.

Population Statistics (London Boroughs)

Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his estimate is of the current population of each London borough based on (a) the 2001 census, (b) electoral rolls and (c) health service users; and what projections he has made for the next five years.

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician who has been asked to reply.
	Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 12 January 2006
	As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your question regarding estimates of the current population of each London borough on (a) 2001 Census, (b) electoral rolls and (c) health service users; and projections for the next five years. (39923)
	The Office for National Statistics publishes annual mid-year population estimates. The latest estimates are for mid-2004 and are given in Table 1. These mid-year population estimates are calculated using a robust methodology and are the best estimates of the resident population in an area. They are based on aged-on 2001 Census data adjusted for births, deaths and net migration. Further information on the methodology can be found at: www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/Product.asp?vlnk=575.
	Population projections for each London borough (and the City of London) for mid-2005 to mid-2010, are also given in Table 1. These projections are based on the mid-2003 population estimates and are the latest population projections available. They assume that trends in fertility, mortality and migration at the time of the mid-2003 population estimate will continue into the future.
	The 2001 Census provided estimates the number of people usually resident in an area on Census day, 29 April 2001. These figures can be obtained from the published 2001 Census table KS01 a copy of which is held in the House of Commons Library in the published volume Census 2001, Key Statistics for local authorities in England and Wales.
	Electoral rolls provide counts of the number of people registered to vote. The latest available data on the local/European electorate for 1 December 2004 can be found in the Table 2. It should be noted that the number of people eligible to vote is not the same as the resident population aged 18 and over. There are numerous reasons for this. For example not everyone who is usually resident is entitled to vote (foreign citizens from outside of the EU and Commonwealth, prisoners, etc. are not eligible), some people do not register to vote and people who have more than one address may register in more than one place. Further there is inevitably some double counting of the registered electorate as electoral registration officers vary in how quickly they remove people from the registers after they have moved away from an area or after they have died. These factors may have a different impact from place to place.
	The number of people registered with a GP. living in each London borough (and the City of London), in July 2004. can also be found in the Table 2. It should also "be noted that patient register counts differ from estimates of the usually resident population for a number of reasons..
	Some patients may have more than one NHS number and be double counted and people may be on a patient register after having left the country. Patient registers for local areas may be inflated, for example, student areas, due to students who do not quickly re-register after finishing their course of study and moving away from an area. The patient registers also exclude individuals who are ineligible to be registered with a GP, such as persons employed in the armed forces, prisoners that are sentenced for a term of two years or more and certain patients in long stay medical hospitals. Again this has differential impact from area to area.

Tax Credits

Ian Taylor: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will ask the Tax Office to provide claimants with a full explanation of how the demands for repayment of (a) working tax credit and (b) child tax credit are calculated.

Dawn Primarolo: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) code of practice 26 "What happens if we have paid you too much tax credit?" explains the rates of recovery for overpayments of tax credits. From April 2006 HMRC will introduce an improved version of the tax credits award notice. This will include a section on overpayments and how any overpayment will be recovered.

Tax Credits

Anne Milton: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many (a) child tax credit and (b) working tax credit applications are being processed; and how many of each were received (i) up to six months ago and (ii) more than six months ago.

Dawn Primarolo: The information is not available in the form requested. There is a single claim form for tax credits so it is not possible to differentiate between claims for child tax credit and working tax credit.

Tax Credits

Frank Field: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if his Department will extend the criteria for suspension of the recovery of a tax credit overpayment to include cases where (a) a letter has been sent by an hon. Member to the Paymaster General regarding a case of disputed overpayment, (b) the Parliamentary ombudsman has commenced an investigation into a case where the claimant has been overpaid and (c) a letter has been sent by an hon. Member to the Tax Credit Office in Preston regarding a case of overpaid tax credits.

Dawn Primarolo: holding answer 19 December 2006
	Where a claimant wishes to dispute recovery of an overpayment, HM Revenue and Customs will initiate suspension of recovery following receipt of a letter or a form TC846 (request to reconsider recovery of tax credits) from the claimant; or a letter sent on behalf of the claimant, and with their authority.

Tax Credits

Paul Goodman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the cost of not reclaiming overpaid tax credits from those whose incomes rise by less than £25,000.

Dawn Primarolo: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Members for Birkenhead (Mr. Frank Field) and Yeovil (Mr. David Laws) on 13 December 2005, Official Report, column 1836W.

Tax Investigations

Peter Bone: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what criteria are used to decide which taxpayers will be subject to tax investigation.

Dawn Primarolo: Cases for direct tax investigation into Self-Assessment returns are selected according to the risk of loss of duty to the Treasury.
	The only exception to this is the small proportion of cases that are statistically selected at random in order to police the system while at the same time providing information as to the extent of compliance in the general population.
	For indirect taxes, "investigation" is the term specifically used to describe the Department's activity to combat cases of suspected fraud.
	The selection of taxpayers for mainstream assurance contact, including visits, is based upon interpretation of the Department's risk analysis systems, past results and other information and intelligence.
	The Department focuses its contacts not only on the wilfully non-compliant through tax investigations, but also on those taxpayers needing education and support through an educational and enabling programme.

Departmental Expenditure

Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the total administrative costs for his core Department are; and whether these are regarded as (a) identifiable and (b) non-identifiable for the purposes of public expenditure statistical analyses.

Hilary Benn: DFID's provisional outturn for its gross control administration costs limit for 2004–05 is £216,457,000.
	DFID's total expenditure, including administration costs, is classified as identifiable, outside the UK for the purpose of the Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses (PESA).

Famine

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will make a statement on the threat of famine in Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya and Djibouti.

Hilary Benn: Poor rains in much of the Horn of Africa at the end of 2005 have left many communities who are dependent on farming and raising livestock in serious difficulties. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation has issued a report saying that as many as 11 million people in Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya and Djibouti may require assistance in 2006. The severe food shortages in parts of these countries is sadly not a new phenomenon, and DFID has been responding with humanitarian assistance for many years. We are aware of the particular threat this year, the possibility that the current crisis may deepen, and that other areas may come to be affected.
	DFID humanitarian advisers visited the worst affected areas in Kenya in November 2005, and visits to Somalia and Ethiopia are planned for early 2006.
	This month DFID contributed £1 million to the World Food Programme for Somalia on top of the over £5 million we spent there on humanitarian interventions in 2005. This includes a number of health and nutrition operations in the worst affected parts of Southern Somalia.
	In Ethiopia DFID made a commitment of £43 million in March 2005 to the cash and food aid based Productive Safety Net programme. This programme provides assistance to some of the poorest communities in Ethiopia. In December 2005 we announced a further £2.7 million for Kenya in response to the situation there.
	DFID will continue to monitor the situation closely and we stand ready to provide additional support if necessary.

Departmental Expenditure

Pete Wishart: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what has been the annual expenditure on training and development for (a) his Department and (b) each (i) non-departmental public body, (ii) Executive agency and (iii) other public body for which he is responsible in (A) Scotland, (B) Wales, (C) each of the English regions and (D) Northern Ireland in each of the last three financial years; and what the planned expenditure is for 2005–06.

Jim Fitzpatrick: The available information is given in the following tables. The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) is not responsible for any training expenditure in bodies in Scotland or Northern Ireland.
	Expenditure on training in the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister is split between budgets held centrally in the training and development team and those held by line management. The central budget covers the ODPM's induction programme, performance management training, the learning library and Skills for Life programme, helps deliver the ODPM's Excellence in Delivery programme and supports the implementation of Professional Skills for Government. Expenditure on training by line managers is via the Training Framework which offers over 600 public scheduled courses covering a wide range of topics to ensure staff have the necessary core skills.
	With regard to the Audit Commission, this is an operational matter for that body. I will ask the chief executive to write to the hon. Member and to ensure the answer is made available in the Library of the House.
	
		Table 1 £000
		
			  2002–03 Out-turn 2003–04 Out-turn 2004–05 Out-turn 2005–06 Planned  
		
		
			 ODPM Central 2,304 1,941 2,162 3,706 Regional breakdown not available 
			 Government Offices 1,680 2,452 2,412 1,779 See regional breakdown in Table 2 
			 Residential Property Tribunal Services 83 108 129 122 Regional breakdown not available 
			 Queen Elizabeth II Conference centre 31 48 27 39 Expenditure all in London 
			 Planning Inspectorate 576 524 457 635 Regional breakdown not available; expenditure in both England and Wales 
			 English Partnerships 346 356 453 1,133 Regional breakdown not available 
			 Fire Service College 266 435 261 316 Regional breakdown not available 
			 Stonebridge HAT 110 109 59 30 Expenditure all in London 
			 London Thames Gateway Development Corporation n/a n/a 5 30 Expenditure all in London and South East. Corporation established in 2004–05 
			 Thurrock Thames Gateway Development Corporation n/a 2 11 12 Expenditure all in London and South East. Established in 2003–04 
			 West Northants Development Corporation n/a n/a n/a 24 Expenditure all in West Midlands. Established in 2005–06 
			 Housing Corporation 304 605 839 675 Regional breakdown not available 
			 VTS n/a n/a 217 255 Regional breakdown not available. Established in 2004–05 
			 Standards Board for England 121 59 87 80 Regional breakdown not available 
			 Total 5,821 6,639 7,119 9,122  
		
	
	n/a=Not available.
	
		Table 2
		
			 Government Offices (Regions) 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 
		
		
			 North East n/a 290 286 189 
			 North West n/a 300 456 281 
			 Yorkshire and Humberside n/a 187 166 170 
			 West Midlands n/a 264 235 189 
			 East Midlands n/a 294 110 55 
			 East region n/a 176 192 161 
			 South West n/a 226 277 166 
			 South East n/a 188 160 157 
			 London n/a 189 180 135 
			 Regional Co-ordination Unit (based in London) n/a 338 350 235 
			 Total 1,680 2,452 2,412 1,779 
		
	
	n/a=Not available.
	The Architects Registration Board's accounts operate on an annual basis—from January to December, rather than the financial year from April to March. The training expenditure, in £000 is as follows:
	
		
			  £ 
		
		
			 2002 10 
			 2003 6 
			 2004 13 
			 2005 6 
			 2006 16

Departmental Publications

David Amess: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister if he will make it his policy to publish as an annex to his annual report a list of all publications published by his Department in the preceding year; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Fitzpatrick: A database of publications issued by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister since May 2002 is available on the ODPM website at: http://www.publications.odpm.gov.uk/ Information can be accessed by both date and policy area.
	The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has no plans to publish this information in duplicate in our annual report.

Local Government Finance

John Spellar: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what action his Department is taking to reduce increases in the cost of auditing to local councils.

Phil Woolas: The Audit Commission is responsible for setting the fees for audit. Its current consultation paper "Local Councils—Proposed fee scales 2006– 2011" gives details of proposed reductions on audit fees for many small councils.

Official Residences (Council Tax)

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether the council tax bills for his official residences have been paid out of public funds, in each year since his appointment as Deputy Prime Minister.

John Prescott: holding answer 9 January 2006
	I have reviewed the arrangements for the payment of council tax on the official residence I occupy at Admiralty house.
	The Government have paid a discounted amount of council tax on this flat since 1997, continuing the arrangements in place for the previous Conservative Administration. The residence at the time was the responsibility of the Ministry of Defence. Consequently, the following amounts of council tax have been paid out of public funds for my official residence:
	
		
			   £ 
			   Ministry of Defence ODPM and predecessors 
		
		
			 1997–98 (21)266.52 — 
			 1998–99 to 2004–05 — 3,564 
		
	
	(21) Pro-rata share subsequently taken over by DETR.
	I was paying council tax on my Hull constituency home and on a rented flat in London, which I vacated in November 2003. I believed that I was paying council tax on all three properties.
	In 1997 I was assigned an official residency at Admiralty house that was deemed as my primary residence in accordance with the House of Commons rules.
	As part of this arrangement I paid additional income tax on the benefit in kind arising from the utilities and services associated with my occupancy of the official residence, equivalent to 10 per cent. of my ministerial salary. This is in accordance with legislation first introduced in the Finance Act 1977 and included in the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988 and the Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003.1 believed that council tax on the official residence was included in this.
	In 1997 the Government carried on paying council tax as before on the flat, and claimed a discount (on a second home/company basis). This was not confirmed with me and nor was any advice given to me at the time.
	On reviewing the situation, I am now aware that an inadvertent error has occurred, based on a genuine misunderstanding. To avoid any doubt, I have therefore:
	issued this answer to a parliamentary question to correct the record and to fully apologise to the House;
	instructed my Department to confirm to Westminster City council that Admiralty house is my primary residence;
	insisted that future council tax bills should be sent direct and personally to me;
	re-imbursed the Department for their payment of council tax since 1997; and
	although I have no legal obligation to do so, I will pay full council tax on Admiralty house for the whole of the period since 1997 and have requested that Westminster City council calculate any amounts arising from my decision to do so.
	The Commons Fees Office have confirmed that I have acted within the rules at all times.
	The Cabinet Secretary has confirmed that for the future he has put in place procedures to ensure that Ministers who are allocated official residences are given clear guidance on dealing with their council tax liabilities.
	Dorneywood is owned and managed by an independent trust, which meets the cost of the council tax. There is no cost to public funds.

Digital Broadcasting

Nigel Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the average cost is per household of (a) digital switch-over and (b) aerial repairs to enable households to receive digital television.

James Purnell: On 8 November 2005, Ofcom published research by the Generics Group which examined the cost and power consumption implications of digital switchover for UK households. The report estimates that
	"for those households that will incur a cost as a result of switchover, the actual cost will depend on the equipment requiring conversion and the level of voluntary conversion carried out before switchover. Typical non-voluntary costs for TVs and recorders in households containing an average collection of reception equipment are therefore estimated to range from £26 to £153."

Bankruptcies

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate he has made of the number of (a) personal and (b) company bankruptcies in (i) London and (ii) each London borough in each of the last three years.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The following table records the numbers of individual bankruptcy orders and company compulsory liquidations in the London Region classified according to Official Receivers' Office from 2002–03 to 2004–05.
	Figures are not separately available for each London borough.
	
		Numbers of compulsory insolvencies recorded in the London Official Receivers offices, 2002–03 to 2004–05 (22)(23) Financial year total
		
			  2002–03 2003–04 2004–05(22)(23) 
		
		
			 Bankruptcy Orders 1,562 2,132 4,910 
			 Company Compulsory Liquidations 1,211 823 1,137 
		
	
	(22) Croydon Official Receiver's Office is classified under London Region for 2004–05 only, when it accounted for 1,678 of the 4,910 bankruptcies and 209 of the 1,137 company compulsory liquidations.
	(23) The 2004–05 figures also include Public Interest Unit (PIU) and Carousel, which together amount to 18 bankruptcies and 139 company compulsory liquidations.

Pregnancy and Maternity

Michael Connarty: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps he is taking to set out the employment legislation relating to pregnancy and maternity for (a) employers and (b) employees.

Gerry Sutcliffe: A large amount of information is already available to both employers and employees, including guidance provided by DTI, DWP and HMRC. ACAS provides information through its dedicated helpline as well as through guidance. The information on the Businesslink.gov website is being enhanced to provide employers with more support in managing a pregnancy in the workplace. Information for employees has been drawn together on to the direct.gov website.
	However, in the context of the changes to maternity leave and pay provisions which will follow the Work and Families Bill, DTI, DWP and HMRC will work together to rationalise the guidance on their own websites and ensure there is comprehensive and coherent information available that is easily accessible and properly signposted. This will include Government working with stakeholders to develop the proposal for a leaflet setting out the rights and responsibilities of both employers and employees which will be provided at an early stage of a woman's pregnancy.

Pregnancy and Maternity

Michael Connarty: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps his Department is taking to support micro and small businesses to manage pregnancy and maternity within their employee base.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The Government recognise that small businesses can sometimes face particular difficulties in managing and administering maternity leave and statutory maternity pay (SMP). Additional financial support is available for smaller employers. All employers are able to claim back 92 per cent. of the SMP they pay to their employees but smaller employers—those whose annual national insurance liability is £45,000 or less—are able to claim back 100 per cent. of the SMP they pay out plus an additional 4.5 per cent. Employers are also able to claim this money in advance from HMRC where making the payment would cause them cashflow problems.
	Measures in the work and families package will also offer small employers more practical support. To give employers more certainty in managing maternity leave we will be extending, from 28 days to eight weeks, the amount of notice a woman must give if she is changing her plans about returning from maternity leave. We will also be clarifying in regulation that an employer may make reasonable contact with a woman during maternity leave. The introduction of keeping in touch days will enable a woman to do some limited days' work activity for her employer. This will support employers and employees in maintaining contact during maternity leave and will help to ease a woman's return to work after maternity leave.
	Government are also changing some of the SMP rules to ease administration for employers. Employers will be able to calculate a daily rate for SMP if this will help them to pay SMP at the same time as a woman's usual payday. Women will be able to choose to begin their maternity leave on any day of the week which will allow maternity leave and pay periods to be fully aligned.
	No employer now needs to calculate SMP manually. From February 2005, HMRC introduced and supplied a new SMP calculate to all employers on its employers CD ROM 2005. HMRC has also improved the SMP calculators on its website. To support those less comfortable with electronic solutions, the HMRC employer's helpline will calculate the SMP amounts and dates payable and the amounts recoverable, and follow this up with prompt reassurance in the form of written confirmation.

Road Maintenance

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the Department for Regional Development Roads maintenance budget expenditure in (a) Limavady and (b) Coleraine borough council areas was in each of the last three years.

Shaun Woodward: The chief executive of Roads Service (Dr. Malcolm McKibbin) has been asked to write to the hon. Gentleman in response to this question.
	Letter from Dr. Malcolm McKibbin, dated 12 January 2006
	You recently asked the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland a Parliamentary Question regarding what the Department for Regional Development Roads maintenance budget expenditure in (a) Limavady and (b) Coleraine Borough Council areas was in each of the last three years.
	I have been asked to reply as these issues fall within my responsibility as Chief Executive of Roads Service.
	The most recent figures available are up to the financial year ended March 2005 and I can confirm that the roads maintenance expenditure in Limavady and Coleraine Borough Council areas in each of the last three years are as detailed in the table below.
	
		
			£000 
			 Summary 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 
		
		
			 Limavady 2,636 3,555 3,156 
			 Coleraine 3,740 5,167 3,960 
		
	
	I hope this information is helpful.

Water Service

Eddie McGrady: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what financial investment he plans to make in the Water Service.

Shaun Woodward: The Priorities and Budget document published on 20 December 2004 provides for the following levels of investment in the Water Service:
	
		
			£ million 
			  2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 
		
		
			 Current investment 110.4 114.7 112.4 
			 Capital investment 279.5 228.8 224.4 
			 Total investment 389.9 343.5 336.8

Darfur

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment he has made of the Government of Sudan's co-operation with the work of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court in Darfur.

Ian Pearson: On 13 December 2005, the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Luis Moreno-Ocampo, presented a report to the UN Security Council on the progress of his Office's investigation into the situation in Darfur. The report, available at www.icc-cpi.int/home.html stated that the Office had made good progress in the investigation's first phase, and noted that the next phase would seek the further assistance and co-operation of the Government of Sudan.
	However, also on 13 December 2005, the Sudanese Justice Minister made comments suggesting that the ICC would not be allowed to enter Darfur to conduct investigations.
	In response, on 14 December 2005, my noble Friend the Foreign and Commonwealth office Minister for Africa, Lord Triesman of Tottenham, said:
	"UN Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1593 referred the situation in Darfur to the ICC and called upon all parties, including the Government of Sudan, to co-operate with the ICC investigation. This referral sent a strong signal to the world at large that there can be no impunity for those guilty of grave human rights abuses. I am therefore deeply concerned to hear the recent statement by Sudan's Justice Minister, Muhammad Ali al-Mardi, that Sudan will not allow investigators from the ICC into Darfur. We expect the Government of Sudan to comply with all the wishes of the international community as set out in UNSCR 1593 and cooperate fully with the ICC should it decide to visit Darfur."
	The Government will continue to support the ICC as it takes forward its investigation, and to maintain pressure on all parties, including the Government of Sudan, to provide full co-operation as requested by the ICC.

Darfur

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations he has made to the Government of Sudan concerning its decision not to allow international investigators into Darfur; and if he will continue to seek the Government of Sudan's agreement to sign up to the International Criminal Court.

Ian Pearson: In a statement issued on 14 December 2005, available at http://www.fco.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage&c= Page&cid=1007029391638&a=KArticle&aid= l133774576642 my noble Friend the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Minister for Africa, Lord Triesman of Tottenham, said:
	"UN Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1593 referred the situation in Darfur to the International Criminal Court (ICC) and called upon all parties, including the Government of Sudan, to co-operate with the ICC investigation. This referral sent a strong signal to the world at large that there can be no impunity for those guilty of grave human rights abuses. I am therefore deeply concerned to hear the recent statement by Sudan's Justice Minister, Muhammed Ali al-Mardi, that Sudan will not allow investigators from the ICC into Darfur. We expect the Government of Sudan to comply with all the wishes of the international community as set out in UNSCR 1593 and cooperate fully with the ICC should it decide to visit Darfur."
	On 21 December 2005, the British ambassador to Sudan met with Vice President Taha of Sudan and also emphasised the importance of co-operation with the ICC.
	The Government will continue to support the ICC as it takes forward its investigation, and to maintain pressure on all parties, including the Government of Sudan, to provide full co-operation in response to any ICC request.
	Sudan is a signatory to the Rome Statute of the ICC but has not yet ratified the Statute. The UK believes in a strong ICC with global membership and jurisdiction that can help bring an end to the culture of impunity for the worst crimes against humanity including genocide and other war crimes. To this end, we urge Sudan to ratify the Rome Statute.

Indonesia

Andy Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent research his Department has commissioned on (a) religious discrimination, (b) church closures and (c) violence in West Java.

Ian Pearson: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has not commissioned any specific research on religious discrimination, church closures and violence in West Java. However, we continually monitor the situation.
	We welcome the fact that President Yudhoyono issued an instruction in December 2005 to his Cabinet Secretary, instructing him to ensure that no more places of worship are closed and to assist congregations which no longer have a place of worship.

UN Security Council Resolutions

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the Government supports the proposal for a United Nations Security Council resolution by Vaclav Havel and Desmond Tutu in their report "A Threat to the Peace".

Kim Howells: We fully support any action in the United Nations, including in the UN Security Council, which would help to promote reform and positive change in Burma. UN Security Council members discussed the situation in Burma on 16 December. The United Kingdom took an active role in this discussion, raising our concerns about human rights abuses, including the detention of political prisoners, internal conflicts and the spread of HIV/AIDS and other diseases.

Child Support Agency

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people have been non-compliant with their Child Support Agency assessment in each quarter since Q1 1996; and if he will make a statement.

James Plaskitt: holding answer 17 November 2005
	The administration of the Child Support Agency is a matter for the Chief Executive. He will write to the hon. Member with the information requested.
	Letter from Stephen Geraghty, dated 12 January 2006
	In reply to your recent Parliamentary Question about the Child Support Agency the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Chief Executive.
	You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people have been non-compliant with their Child Support Agency assessment in each quarter since Q1 1996; and if he will make a statement.
	The information requested is provided in the table attached.
	It should be noted that, whilst the number of non-compliant cases has nearly doubled between February 1996 and August 2005, the Child Support Agency's caseload has also increased significantly over this period. Over the same period, the Agency's case compliance rate has increased from 58 to 70 per cent.
	I hope you find this helpful.
	
		Child Support Agency collection service cases compliance status February 1996 to August 2005
		
			 Quarter ending Number of non compliant cases 
		
		
			 February 1996 66,000 
			 May 1996 65,000 
			 August 1996 67,000 
			 November 1996 70,000 
			 February 1997 70,000 
			 May 1997 68,000 
			 August 1997 70,000 
			 November 1997 73,000 
			 February 1998 76,000 
			 May 1998 81,000 
			 August 1998 87,000 
			 November 1998 91,000 
			 February 1999 97,000 
			 May 1999 99,000 
			 August 1999 101,000 
			 November 1999 104,000 
			 February 2000 106,000 
			 May 2000 104,000 
			 August 2000 105,000 
			 November 2000 104,000 
			 February 2001 104,000 
			 May 2001 101,000 
			 August 2001 101,000 
			 November 2001 101,000 
			 February 2002 99,000 
			 May 2002 92,000 
			 August 2002 90,000 
			 November 2002 91,000 
			 February 2003 90,000 
			 May 2003 — 
			 August 2003 — 
			 November 2003 — 
			 February 2004 — 
			 May 2004 121,000 
			 August 2004 123,000 
			 November 2004 124,000 
			 February 2005 126,000 
			 May 2005 123,000 
			 August 2005 125,000 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Numbers are rounded to the nearest thousand.
	2. Robust information covering the period May 2003 to February 2004 is not currently available.
	3. Compliance is defined as all those cases which are open and have paid money, either regular maintenance and/or arrears via the collection service over the preceding quarter.
	4. The above includes only those old scheme cases with a full maintenance assessment, and those new scheme cases with either a full maintenance calculation, or a default maintenance decision. Old scheme cases with a punitive interim maintenance assessment are excluded from this analysis in line with the agency's target definition.

Health-related Benefit Claims

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many health-related benefit claims by the working age population (a) were made in 2004–05 and (b) have been made in 2005–06 in (i) England, (ii) the West Midlands and (iii) Stoke-on-Trent.

Anne McGuire: Information is not available in the format requested. The most recent available information on the number of recipients of health-related benefits is in the table.
	
		Working age recipients of incapacity benefit (IB); severe disablement benefit (SDA); industrial injuries disablement benefit (IIDB); reduced earnings allowance (REA); retirement allowance (RA); income support disability premium (ISDP); or disability living allowance (DLA), by area
		
			 Area IB/SDA IIDB/REA/RA(24)(25) ISDP DLA 
		
		
			 England 2,201,500 154,500 913,300 1,288,200 
			 West Midlands GOR 247,300 17,500 99,900 149,100 
			 Stoke-on-Trent North parliamentary constituency 5,800 600 2,300 3,000 
			 Stoke-on-Trent city council area 19,500 2,000 7,400 10,500 
		
	
	(24) IIDB and REA/RA figures are at March 2005, all others are at May 2005.
	(25) A customer may be in receipt of either industrial injuries disablement benefit or reduced earnings allowance/retirement allowance or both.
	Notes:
	1. Figures are rounded to the nearest hundred.
	2. IB/SDA 'Claimant' figures include all IB and SDA (including IB credits only cases).
	3. DLA totals show the number of people in receipt of an allowance, and exclude people with entitlement where the payment has been suspended, for example if they are in hospital.
	Source:
	DWP Information Directorate, Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study100 per cent. data and Industrial Injuries Computer System 100 per cent. count.

Jobcentre Plus

John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the charge per minute is of telephoning the Jobcentre Plus contact centre from (a) a land line and (b) from each mobile phone network; and what the average call duration has been in the last 12 months.

Margaret Hodge: holding answer 20 December 2005
	The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus, Lesley Strathie. She will write to my hon. Friend.
	Letter from Lesley Strathie, dated 12 January 2006
	The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question concerning what the charge per minute is of phoning the Jobcentre Plus contact centre from (a) a land line and (b) from each mobile phone network; and what the average call duration has been in the last 12 months. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
	To make a claim, the customer calls a contact centre. Contact centre staff ask the customer a series of questions to assess their potential eligibility to Jobcentre Plus benefits and then arrange to call the customer back at a mutually agreed time, to assist in completion of a claim form. This allows the customers to provide information over the phone, rather than completing a lengthy form.
	Jobcentre Plus contact centres use 0845 numbers—which is equivalent to local rate when customers use a BT landline. The charge per minute will depend on the service/tariff that customers have signed up to with their phone provider. Customers using mobile telephones or other landline networks are charged at their network provider's normal tariff for 0845 calls.
	The average length of an inbound call is 11 minutes. BT call prices for 0845 numbers vary dependent on the time the customer calls, and can range from 1p to 3p per minute. Based on this information the cost of the inbound call using a BT line would be on average between 11p & 33p. Customers can also use "warm phones" in local Jobcentre Plus offices to call the contact centre free of charge.
	To complete the information gathering process for a customer's claim to benefit, a call is made from the contact centre to the customer. There is no cost to the customer for this call.

New Deal

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what his estimate is of public expenditure on the new deal for each year from 1997–98 to 2008–09; and if he will make a statement.

Margaret Hodge: The available information is in the following table.
	
		New deal expenditure £ million
		
			   Amount 
		
		
			 1997–98 Outturn 43 
			 1998–99 Outturn 314 
			 1999–2000 Outturn 536 
			 2000–01 Outturn 596 
			 2001–02 Outturn 672 
			 2002–03 Outturn 736 
			 2003–04 Outturn 655 
			 2004–05 Outturn 639 
			 2005–06 Forecast outturn 557 
			 2006–07 Plans 536 
			 2007–08 Plans 538 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures comprise: programme expenditure; allowance payments, and the New Deal 50 plus Employment Credit (which was subsumed in the Working Tax Credit from 2003–04).
	2. Figures also include total administrative expenditure up to 2002–03 but only the staff cost element of administrative expenditure from 2003–04.
	3. Figures for 2006–07 and 2007–08 are indicative and subject to change.
	4. Figures for 2008–09 are not available.
	Source:
	DWP Financial Strategy Division

Older Workers

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number and proportion of (a) men and (b) women aged between 50 years and state pension age who (i) changed jobs, (ii) changed careers, (iii) reduced their hours of work, (iv) took up educational courses, (v) retired early due to ill-health and (vi) retired early for reasons other than ill-health over the last 20 years; and if he will make a statement.

Margaret Hodge: The available information is in the tables.
	
		Number of people aged 50 to state pension age changing occupation or employer since 1986
		
			  Changed occupation or employer in last year Changed occupation in last year 
			  Male Female All Male Female All 
		
		
			 1986 135,000 76,000 211,000 102,000 59,000 160,000 
			 1987 157,000 89,000 246,000 119,000 72,000 191,000 
			 1988 184,000 99,000 283,000 142,000 79,000 222,000 
			 1989 217,000 128,000 345,000 167,000 103,000 270,000 
			 1990 227,000 131,000 358,000 175,000 98,000 273,000 
			 1991 197,000 113,000 309,000 141,000 90,000 232,000 
			 1992 169,000 91,000 260,000 127,000 68,000 195,000 
			 1993 152,000 91,000 242,000 115,000 65,000 180,000 
			 1994 154,000 98,000 252,000 108,000 75,000 182,000 
			 1995 179,000 108,000 287,000 129,000 83,000 212,000 
			 1996 192,000 113,000 306,000 133,000 75,000 207,000 
			 1997 221,000 118,000 339,000 158,000 85,000 243,000 
			 1998 213,000 138,000 352,000 148,000 100,000 248,000 
			 1999 223,000 135,000 358,000 157,000 97,000 254,000 
			 2000 230,000 145,000 375,000 153,000 114,000 268,000 
			 2001(26) 238,000 155,000 393,000 110,000 74,000 184,000 
			 2002 227,000 147,000 374,000 109,000 69,000 179,000 
			 2003 225,000 133,000 359,000 100,000 65,000 165,000 
			 2004 237,000 155,000 392,000 112,000 75,000 188,000 
			 2005 240,000 150,000 391,000 114,000 77,000 191,000 
		
	
	(26) Since 2001, it has been necessary to use a different method to assess whether people have changed occupation. Direct comparisons can therefore not be made with figures in previous years.
	Notes:
	1. The Labour Force Survey is a sample survey of private households, student halls of residence and NHS accommodation and is subject to statistical variation.
	2. Figures are rounded to the nearest thousand.
	Source:
	Labour Force Survey
	
		Percentage of people aged 50 to state pension age changing occupation or employer since 1986
		
			  Changed occupation or employer in last year Changed occupation in last year 
			  Male Female All Male Female All 
		
		
			 1986 3.1 2.6 2.9 2.4 2.0 2.2 
			 1987 3.7 3.0 3.4 2.8 2.4 2.6 
			 1988 4.3 3.3 3.9 3.3 2.7 3.1 
			 1989 5.1 4.3 4.8 3.9 3.5 3.7 
			 1990 5.3 4.5 5.0 4.1 3.3 3.8 
			 1991 4.7 3.9 4.3 3.3 3.1 3.2 
			 1992 4.0 3.1 3.6 3.0 2.3 2.7 
			 1993 3.6 3.1 3.4 2.7 2.2 2.5 
			 1994 3.6 3.2 3.4 2.5 2.5 2.5 
			 1995 4.1 3.5 3.9 3.0 2.7 2.9 
			 1996 4.4 3.6 4.1 3.0 2.4 2.7 
			 1997 4.9 3.6 4.3 3.5 2.6 3.1 
			 1998 4.6 4.1 4.4 3.2 3.0 3.1 
			 1999 4.7 3.9 4.4 3.3 2.8 3.1 
			 2000 4.7 4.1 4.5 3.2 3.2 3.2 
			 2001(27) 4.9 4.3 4.6 2.3 2.0 2.2 
			 2002 4.6 4.0 4.3 2.2 1.9 2.1 
			 2003 4.5 3.6 4.1 2.0 1.8 1.9 
			 2004 4.7 4.2 4.5 2.2 2.0 2.1 
			 2005 4.7 4.0 4.4 2.2 2.1 2.2 
		
	
	(27) Since 2001, it has been necessary to use a different method to assess whether people have changed occupation. Direct comparisons can therefore not be made with figures in previous years.
	Note:
	The Labour Force Survey is a sample survey and is subject to statistical variation.
	Source:
	Labour Force Survey
	
		Number of people between 50 and state pension age who reduced their working hours and number of people who have taken up educational courses since 1986
		
			  Reduced working hours(28) Engaged on educational course(29) 
			  Male Female All Male Female All 
		
		
			 1986 16,000 31,000 47,000 — — — 
			 1987 23,000 26,000 49,000 — — — 
			 1988 23,000 26,000 48,000 — — — 
			 1989 31,000 32,000 63,000 — — — 
			 1990 29,000 38,000 67,000 — — — 
			 1991 34,000 34,000 68,000 — — — 
			 1992 32,000 29,000 61,000 — — — 
			 1993 38,000 30,000 68,000 — — — 
			 1994 32,000 30,000 63,000 — — — 
			 1995 32,000 37,000 70,000 45,000 53,000 98,000 
			 1996 35,000 39,000 74,000 61,000 52,000 113,000 
			 1997 41,000 50,000 91,000 58,000 62,000 120,000 
			 1998 43,000 55,000 98,000 51,000 67,000 118,000 
			 1999 42,000 44,000 86,000 69,000 87,000 156,000 
			 2000 48,000 51,000 99,000 82,000 107,000 189,000 
			 2001 50,000 58,000 107,000 95,000 128,000 223,000 
			 2002 54,000 56,000 110,000 82,000 124,000 206,000 
			 2003 59,000 57,000 115,000 90,000 136,000 226,000 
			 2004 64,000 64,000 128,000 101,000 142,000 243,000 
			 2005 64,000 52,000 116,000 87,000 125,000 212,000 
		
	
	(28) Consists of people who were in full time work a year before the survey interview but were in part-time work at the time of interview.
	(29) Consists of people who did not report being engaged on an educational course a year before the survey interview but were on a course at the time of interview.
	Notes:
	1. Information on people enrolling on educational courses is not available prior to 1995.
	2. Data does not include people who enrolled on leisure courses or those who participated on short courses within the year ending before the survey interview.
	3. The Labour Force Survey is a sample survey and is subject to statistical variation.
	4. Figures are rounded to the nearest thousand.
	Source:
	Labour Force Survey
	
		Percentage of people between 50 and state pension age who reduced their working hours and number of people who have taken up educational courses since 1986
		
			  Reduced working hours(30) Enrolled on educational course(31) 
			  Male Female All Male Female All 
		
		
			 1986 0.4 1.0 0.6 — — — 
			 1987 0.5 0.9 0.7 — — — 
			 1988 0.5 0.9 0.7 — — — 
			 1989 0.7 1.1 0.9 — — — 
			 1990 0.7 1.3 0.9 — — — 
			 1991 0.8 1.2 1.0 — — — 
			 1992 0.8 1.0 0.9 — — — 
			 1993 0.9 1.0 0.9 — — — 
			 1994 0.8 1.0 0.9 — — — 
			 1995 0.7 1.2 0.9 1.0 1.7 1.3 
			 1996 0.8 1.2 1.0 1.4 1.7 1.5 
			 1997 0.9 1.5 1.2 1.3 1.9 1.5 
			 1998 0.9 1.6 1.2 1.1 2.0 1.5 
			 1999 0.9 1.3 1.1 1.5 2.5 1.9 
			 2000 1.0 1.4 1.2 1.7 3.0 2.3 
			 2001 1.0 1.6 1.3 2.0 3.6 2.6 
			 2002 1.1 1.5 1.3 1.7 3.4 2.4 
			 2003 1.2 1.5 1.3 1.8 3.7 2.6 
			 2004 1.3 1.7 1.5 2.0 3.8 2.8 
			 2005 1.3 1.4 1.3 1.7 3.3 2.4 
		
	
	(30) Consists of people who were in full time work a year before the survey interview but were in part-time work at the time of interview.
	(31) Consists of people who did not report being engaged on an educational course a year before the survey interview but were on a course at the time of interview.
	Notes:
	1. Information on people enrolling on educational courses is not available prior to 1995.
	2. Data does not include people who enrolled on leisure courses or those who participated on short courses within the year ending before the survey interview.
	3. The Labour Force Survey is a sample survey and is subject to statistical variation.
	Source:
	Labour Force Survey
	
		Number of people between 50 and state pension age recorded as retiring early due to ill health and number of people recorded as retiring early for other reasons
		
			  Number of people in work a year earlier now recorded as being inactive due to long-term sickness or disability Number of people in work a year earlier now recorded as being inactive due to retirement or not needing/ wanting work 
			  Male Female All Male Female All 
		
		
			 1986 39,000 12,000 51,000 76,000 49,000 125,000 
			 1987 47,000 12,000 60,000 70,000 41,000 112,000 
			 1988 30,000 16,000 45,000 49,000 39,000 88,000 
			 1989 32,000 15,000 47,000 54,000 39,000 93,000 
			 1990 30,000 14,000 44,000 58,000– 43,000 101,000 
			 1991 32,000 14,000 46,000 63,000 47,000 110,000 
			 1992 — 18,000 — — 28,000 — 
			 1993 59,000 16,000 75,000 58,000 33,000 91,000 
			 1994 48,000 22,000 70,000 43,000 32,000 75,000 
			 1995 40,000 22,000 62,000 47,000 24,000 71,000 
			 1996 30,000 19,000 50,000 40,000 37,000 77,000 
			 1997 35,000 21,000 56,000 51,000 33,000 84,000 
			 1998 23,000 21,000 44,000 61,000 39,000 100,000 
			 1999 29,000 17,000 46,000 59,000 32,000 91,000 
			 2000 29,000 16,000 45,000 52,000 34,000 86,000 
			 2001 28,000 18,000 46,000 62,000 32,000 93,000 
			 2002 33,000 18,000 50,000 63,000 28,000 91,000 
			 2003 25,000 13,000 38,000 54,000 24,000 77,000 
			 2004 24,000 16,000 40,000 58,000 29,000 87,000 
			 2005 27,000 14,000 41,000 49,000 30,000 79,000 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Consists of individuals who recall being in work or laid off or on short-time working one year earlier, who said they were now economically inactive due to long-term sickness or disability in particular year. These individuals are not necessarily 'retired' and could have subsequently returned to work.
	2. Consists of individuals who recall being in work or laid off or on short-time working one year earlier, who said they were now economically inactive due to being retired or not needing or wanting work. Some of these individuals may have left their last job due to sickness or disability.
	3. Information for men and for the 'All' category in1992 is not included as data is not available on the categories of economic inactivity for 60 to 64-year-old men at this point.
	4. The structure of the economic activity questions on the Labour Force Survey was changed in 1992 and data may not necessarily be entirely consistent with future years.
	5. The Labour Force Survey is a sample survey and is subject to statistical variation.
	6. Figures are rounded to the nearest thousand.
	Source:
	Labour Force Survey
	
		
			  Percentage of people in work a year earlier now recorded as being inactive due to long-term sickness or disability Percentage of people in work a year earlier now recorded as being inactive due to retirement or not needing/ wanting work 
			  Male Female All Male Female All 
		
		
			 1986 0.9 0.4 0.7 1.8 1.7 1.7 
			 1987 1.1 0.4 0.8 1.6 1.4 1.5 
			 1988 0.7 0.5 0.6 1.1 1.3 1.2 
			 1989 0.7 0.5 0.6 1.3 1.3 1.3 
			 1990 0.7 0.5 0.6 1.4 1.4 1.4 
			 1991 0.8 0.5 0.7 1.5 1.6 1.5 
			 1992 0.0 0.6 0.0 0.0 0.9 0.0 
			 1993 1.4 0.5 1.0 1.4 1.1 1.3 
			 1994 1.1 0.7 1.0 1.0 1.1 1.0 
			 1995 0.9 0.7 0.8 1.1 0.8 1.0 
			 1996 0.7 0.6 0.7 0.9 1.2 1.0 
			 1997 0.8 0.7 0.7 1.1 1.0 1.1 
			 1998 0.5 0.6 0.6 1.3 1.1 1.2 
			 1999 0.6 0.5 0.6 1.2 0.9 1.1 
			 2000 0.6 0.5 0.5 1.1 1.0 1.0 
			 2001 0.6 0.5 0.5 1.3 0.9 1.1 
			 2002 0.7 0.5 0.6 1.3 0.8 1.1 
			 2003 0.5 0.3 0.4 1.1 0.6 0.9 
			 2004 0.5 0.4 0.5 1.1 0.8 1.0 
			 2005 0.5 0.4 0.5 1.0 0.8 0.9 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Consists of individuals who recall being in work or laid off or on short-time working one year earlier, who said they were now economically inactive due to long-term sickness or disability in particular year. These individuals are not necessarily 'retired' and could have subsequently returned to work.
	2. Consists of individuals who recall being in work or laid off or on short-time working one year earlier, who said they were now economically inactive due to being retired or not needing or wanting work. Some of these individuals may have left their last job due to sickness or disability.
	3. Information for men and for the 'All' category in1992 is not included as data is not available on the categories of economic inactivity for 60 to 64-year-old men at this point.
	4. The structure of the economic activity questions on the Labour Force Survey was changed in 1992 and data may not necessarily be entirely consistent with future years.
	5. The Labour Force Survey is a sample survey and is subject to statistical variation.
	Source:
	Labour Force Survey

Pathways to Work

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what cost benefit analysis has been carried out with regard to the pathways to work pilot scheme.

Margaret Hodge: The information requested is in Working Paper "Incapacity Benefit Reforms—Pathways to Work Pilots performance and analysis" a copy of which has been placed in the Library.
	The pathways to work districts are piloting new measures and innovative approaches to helping people with long term illnesses or a disability to return to work. As pilot schemes, they are designed to test whether alternative approaches may be more effective than existing measures.
	Early results show off-flows from incapacity benefit at six months of around 48 per cent. in the pilot areas compared with around 40 per cent. nationally, an improvement of eight percentage points, resulting in a reduction in the incapacity benefit caseload which more than pays for the additional costs of the pilots.

Pensioner Benefits

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much was spent (a) in cash terms, (b) at current prices and (c) as a share of gross domestic product on (i) the basic state pension, (ii) pension credit, minimum income guarantee or income support for the elderly and (iii) all pensioner benefits in each year since 1992–93; what the estimate is for each year to the end of the public expenditure planning period; and how many pensioners were in receipt of each benefit in each year.

Stephen Timms: The available information regarding the figures requested on pensions is in the table as follows.
	
		1. Basic state pension
		
			  £ million Share of GDP 
			  Cash terms Current prices (percentage) 
		
		
			 1992–93 25,364 34,806 4.1 
			 1993–94 26,546 35,520 4.1 
			 1994–95 26,859 35,395 3.9 
			 1995–96 27,740 35,559 3.8 
			 1996–97 29,239 36,201 3.8 
			 1997–98 30,391 36,547 3.7 
			 1998–99 31,914 37,408 3.7 
			 1999–2000 33,378 38,369 3.6 
			 2000–01 33,986 38,564 3.5 
			 2001–02 36,565 40,490 3.6 
			 2002–03 38,469 41,287 3.6 
			 2003–04 39,828 41,641 3.6 
			 2004–05 41,389 42,373 3.5 
			 2005–06 43,055 43,055 3.5 
			 2006–07 44,829 43,753 3.5 
			 2007–08 46,966 44,652 3.4 
		
	
	
		2. Pension credit, minimum income guarantee or income support
		
			  £ million Share of GDP 
			  Cash terms Current prices (percentage) 
		
		
			 1992–93 3,687 5,059 0.6 
			 1993–94 3,894 5,210 0.6 
			 1994–95 3,925 5,173 0.6 
			 1995–96 3,841 4,924 0.5 
			 1996–97 3,764 4,660 0.5 
			 1997–98 3,721 4,475 0.5 
			 1998–99 3,566 4,180 0.4 
			 1999–2000 3,725 4,283 0.4 
			 2000–01 4,035 4,578 0.4 
			 2001–02 4,417 4,891 0.4 
			 2002–03 4,405 4,728 0.4 
			 2003–04 4,851 5,072 0.4 
			 2004–05 5,997 6,140 0.5 
			 2005–06 6,457 6,457 0.5 
			 2006–07 7,059 6,889 0.5 
			 2007–08 7,817 7,432 0.6 
		
	
	
		3. All pensioner benefits
		
			  £ million Share of GDP 
			  Cash terms Current prices (percentage) 
		
		
			 1992–93 35,387 48,559 5.8 
			 1993–94 37,811 50,594 5.8 
			 1994–95 38,723 51,030 5.6 
			 1995–96 39,919 51,170 5.5 
			 1996–97 41,829 51,789 5.4 
			 1997–98 43,426 52,222 5.3 
			 1998–99 45,165 52,940 5.2 
			 1999–2000 47,934 55,102 5.2 
			 2000–01 50,580 57,392 5.2 
			 2001–02 54,494 60,343 5.4 
			 2002–03 57,437 61,644 5.4 
			 2003–04 60,230 62,971 5.4 
			 2004–05 64,560 66,095 5.5 
			 2005–06 68,669 68,669 5.6 
			 2006–07 71,400 69,686 5.5 
			 2007–08 75,776 72,042 5.6 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Figures have been rounded to the nearest million pounds.
	2. All figures are consistent with the pre-Budget report 2005 and are in 2005–06 prices. Figures are for GB other than the share of GDP which is a proportion of the UKGDP.
	3. All pensioner benefits (table 3) includes the basic state pension (table 1) and pension credit (table 2) and the following benefits paid to pensioners: Christmas bonus-contribution based; retirement pension-non contributory; invalidity/incapacity benefit up to and including 1999–2000; widows/bereavement benefits; severe disablement allowance; winter fuel payments (from 1997–98) onwards; over- 65s payment (in 2005–06) and over-70s payment (in 2004–05 and 2005–06); over-75 TV licence (from 2000–01 onwards); housing Benefit and discretionary housing payments; community charge/council tax benefit, pensions compensation board.
	Source:
	Figures have been taken from the DWP Expenditure tables.
	
		Number of pensioners in receipt of benefits Caseload (thousand)
		
			  Retirement pension contribution based Widows/bereavement benefits Invalidity/incapacity benefit Incapacity benefit-credits only 
		
		
			 1992–93 10,096 50 282 — 
			 1993–94 10,103 51 298 — 
			 1994–95 10,139 47 299 — 
			 1995–96 10,261 47 279 6 
			 1996–97 10,423 43 217 5 
			 1997–98 10,574 36 154 4 
			 1998–99 10,712 35 90 5 
			 1999–2000 10,851 31 29 5 
			 2000–01 10,931 28 — 4 
			 2001–02 11,036 28 — — 
			 2002–03 11,121 28 — — 
			 2003–04 11,250 27 — — 
			 2004–05 11,529 24 — — 
			 2005–06 11,789 21 — — 
			 2006–07 12,016 19 — — 
			 2007–08 12,275 17 — — 
		
	
	
		Caseload (thousand)
		
			  Retirement pension non-contributory Severe disablement allowance Winter fuel payments Over 75 TV licence Income support for people over 60/minimum income guarantee/pension credit 
		
		
			 1992–93 29 46 — — 1,668 
			 1993–94 29 49 — — 1,789 
			 1994–95 28 49 — — 1,776 
			 1995–96 29 35 — — 1,777 
			 1996–97 27 38 — — 1,756 
			 1997–98 26 39 9,759 — 1,714 
			 1998–99 25 41 9,953 — 1,651 
			 1999–2000 24 42 10,084 — 1,628 
			 2000–01 23 41 11,106 3,156 1,638 
			 2001–02 24 42 11,202 3,859 1,736 
			 2002–03 23 43 11,358 3,778 1,760 
			 2003–04 24 43 11,486 3,838 1,977 
			 2004–05 25 43 11,613 3,875 2,603 
			 2005–06 26 42 11,762 3,922 2,741 
			 2006–07 29 42 11,959 3,970 2,878 
			 2007–08 30 41 12,254 4,014 3,076 
		
	
	
		Caseload (thousand)
		
			  Housing benefit Council tax benefit 
		
		
			 1992–93 1,837 3,315 
			 1993–94 1,914 2,719 
			 1994–95 1,937 2,801 
			 1995–96 1,917 2,769 
			 1996–97 1,886 2,692 
			 1997–98 1,844 2,623 
			 1998–99 1,798 2,567 
			 1999–2000 1,726 2,471 
			 2000–01 1,664 2,387 
			 2001–02 1,637 2,371 
			 2002–03 1,612 2,357 
			 2003–04 1,541 2,341 
			 2004–05 1,554 2,467 
			 2005–06 1,559 2,609 
			 2006–07 1,562 2,698 
			 2007–08 1,565 2,787 
		
	
	Notes.
	1. Caseloads have been rounded to the nearest thousand.
	2. Pension credit, minimum income guarantee or income support:
	3. Numbers from 2005–06 are forecast.
	4. No payments of incapacity benefit were paid to people over state pension age from 2000–01 onwards (a small number of credits only cases are in 2000–01).
	5. Winter fuel payments began in 1997–98.
	6. Free TV licences for the over 75s began in 2000–01.
	Source:
	DWP Historic and forecast caseload information.

State Pension

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the value of the basic pension would have been for (a) individuals and (b) couples in (i) 1997–98 and (ii) 2006–07 if it had been increased in line with average earnings each year from April 1980.

Stephen Timms: The information is in the table.
	
		
			  1997–98 2006–07 
		
		
			 Individuals 95.45 136.75 
			 Couples 152.95 219.10 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. All figures are in cash terms.
	2. In April 1980 the rate of Basic State Pension was £23.30 (£37.30 for a couple).
	3. There are no singles or couples rate as such, the basic state pension is an individual benefit; although the Category A rate is commonly referred to as the singles rate, and the combination of the Category A and Category B rate paid to married women is commonly referred to as the couples rate.
	4. Figures are based on the April 1980 rate of basic state pension uprated in line with growth in the seasonally unadjusted Average Earnings Index (including bonuses) to September in each year, They take account of the convention that rates of basic state pension are rounded to the nearest 5p.
	5. The actual level of the basic state pension was £62.45 (£99.80 for a couple) in 1997–98. The proposed rate is £84.25 (£134.75 for a couple) in 2006–07.

Schools (Out-of-hours Facilities)

Si�n Simon: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps she is taking to improve out-of-hours facilities provided by schools.

Jacqui Smith: We have committed 840 million to help develop extended services, including high quality child care, study support, and before and after school clubs, so that they are accessible through all our schools by 2010. We have also appointed the National Remodelling Team to provide support to schools and local authorities in developing extended services. Good progress is being made with 4,400 schools, thus far, indicating their willingness to work on developing extended services.

Small Classes

David Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if she will fund smaller classes for children who are not reaching the required educational standard; and if she will make a statement.

Jacqui Smith: The Schools White Paper, Higher Standards, Better Schools For All, announced our plans for personalised learning, and in particular for catch-up lessons for pupils who are falling behind. 335 million has been earmarked within the Dedicated Schools Grant (DSG) for 200608, to provide the resources secondary schools need to start delivering personalised learning for pupils in Key Stage 3, particularly for those who have fallen behind in literacy and numeracy and for those who are gifted or talented.
	230 million of DSG for 200608 was earmarked in the Schools Funding Announcement on 7 December 2005 to personalise learning in primary schools. This will enable schools to provide more effective small group and one-to-one tuition.
	In addition, an extra 60 million in each of 200607 and 200708 will be shared among the primary and secondary sectors, targeted at schools with the largest numbers of pupils who have fallen behind in English and maths.

Special Needs

Edward Balls: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills What steps she plans to take to improve the co-ordination of services for children with special needs and their families.

Maria Eagle: The Every Child Matters Change for Children Programme aims to improve the coordination of services for children and families through children's trust arrangements, children's centres and extended schools. The programme will enable us to better deliver improved services for children with special needs and disabled children and their families, as set out in the National Service Framework for Children, Young People and Maternity Services and the Prime Minister's Strategy Unit report Improving the Life Chances of Disabled People.

Special Needs

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children were recorded as having a requirement for (a) a statement of educational need, (b) School Action and (c) School Action Plus in (i) 200304 and (ii) 200405.

Maria Eagle: The available information is given in the tables.
	
		Number of pupils with statements of special educational needs (SEN) by type of school 2004 and 2005Position in January each yearEngland
		
			  2004 2005 
		
		
			 All schools   
			 Pupils with statements 247,590 242,580 
			 Pupils on roll 8,334,880 8,274,470 
			 Incidence (Percentage)(32) 3.0 2.9 
			
			 Maintained schools   
			 Nursery   
			 Pupils with statements 460 410 
			 Pupils on roll 38,970 37,410 
			 Incidence (percentage)(32) 1.2 1.1 
			 Placement (percentage)(33) 0.2 0.2 
			
			 Primary   
			 Pupils with statements 69,610 67,380 
			 Pupils on roll 4,252,540 4,204,500 
			 Incidence (percentage)(32) 1.6 1.6 
			 Placement (percentage)(33) 28.1 27.8 
			 Secondary   
			 Pupils with statements 78,480 76,580 
			 Pupils on roll 3,324,950 3,316,050 
			 Incidence (percentage)(32) 2.4 2.3 
			 Placement (percentage)(33) 31.7 31.6 
			
			 Special(34)(35)   
			 Pupils with statements 84,250 83,290 
			 Pupils on roll 86,930 85,500 
			 Incidence (percentage)(32) 96.9 97.4 
			 Placement (percentage)(33) 34.0 34.3 
			
			 Pupil Referral Units(35)   
			 Pupils with statements 2,300 2,260 
			 Pupils on roll 13,040 14,470 
			 Incidence (percentage)(32) 17.6 15.6 
			 Placement (percentage)(33) 0.9 0.9 
			
			 Other schools   
			 Independent(36)   
			 Pupils with statements 7,800 7,930 
			 Pupils on roll 613,620 611,670 
			 Incidence (percentage)(32) 1.3 1.3 
			 Placement (percentage)(33) 3.1 3.3 
			
			 Non-Maintained Special(35)   
			 Pupils with statements 4,700 4,740 
			 Pupils on roll 4,840 4,870 
			 Incidence (percentage)(32) 97.2 97.3 
			 Placement (percentage)(33) 1.9 2.0 
		
	
	(32) Incidence of pupilsthe number of pupils with statements expressed as a proportion of the number of pupils on roll.
	(33) Placement of pupilsthe number of pupils with statements expressed as a proportion of the number of pupils with statements in all schools.
	(34) Including general and special hospital schools.
	(35) Excluding dually registered pupils.
	(36) Includes direct grant nursery schools and city technology colleges and academies.
	Note:
	Totals may not appear to equal the sum of the component parts because numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10.
	Source:
	Annual Schools Census
	
		Number of pupils with special educational needs (SEN) without statements by type of school2004 and 2005Position in January each yearEngland
		
			  2004 2005 
		
		
			 All schools(37)   
			 Pupils with SEN without statements 1,197,490 1,230,800 
			 Pupils on roll 8,334,680 8,274,320 
			 Incidence (percentage)(38) 14.4 14.9 
			
			 Maintained schools   
			 Nursery   
			 Pupils with SEN without statements 4,270 4,110 
			 Pupils on roll 38,970 37,410 
			 Incidence (percentage)(38) 11.0 11.0 
			 Placement (percentage)(39) 0.4 0.3 
			
			 Primary   
			 SEN provisionschool action 467,020 468,480 
			 SEN provisionschool action plus (40) 218,680 224,000 
			 Pupils with SEN without statements 685,700 692,480 
			 Pupils on roll 4,252,540 4,204,500 
			 Incidence (percentage)(38) 16.1 16.5 
			 Placement (percentage)(39) 57.3 56.3 
			
			 Secondary   
			 SEN provisionschool action 318,660 333,250 
			 SEN provisionschool action plus(40) 131,470 140,260 
			 Pupils with SEN without statements 450,120 473,510 
			 Pupils on roll 3,324,950 3,316,050 
			 Incidence (percentage)(38) 13.5 14.3 
			 Placement (percentage)(39) 37.6 38.5 
			
			 Special(37)(38)   
			 SEN provisionschool action 170 230 
			 SEN provisionschool action plus(40) 1,630 1,520 
			 Pupils with SEN without statements 1,800 1,750 
			 Pupils on roll 86,730 85,350 
			 Incidence (percentage)(38) 2.1 2.1 
			 Placement (percentage)(39) 0.1 0.1 
			
			 Pupil Referral Units(41)(42)   
			 Pupils with SEN without statements 6,440 6,540 
			 Pupils on roll 13,040 14,470 
			 Incidence (percentage)(38) 49.4 45.2 
			 Placement (percentage)(39) 0.5 0.5 
			
			 Other schools   
			 Independent(43)   
			 Pupils with SEN without statements 49,140 52,370 
			 Pupils on roll 613,620 611,670 
			 Incidence (percentage)(38) 8.0 8.6 
			 Placement (percentage)(39) 4.1 4.3 
			
			 Non-Maintained Special(41)   
			 SEN provisionschool action (44) 10 
			 SEN provisionschool action plus(40) 20 30 
			 Pupils with SEN without statements 30 40 
			 Pupils on roll 4,840 4,870 
			 Incidence (percentage)(38) 0.5 0.8 
			 Placement (percentage)(39) 0.0 0.0 
		
	
	(37) Excludes general hospital schools. Data for pupils with SEN without statements is not collected from these schools.
	(38) Incidence of pupilsthe number of pupils with SEN without statements expressed as a proportion of pupils on roll.
	(39) Placement of pupilsthe number of pupils with SEN without statements expressed as a proportion of pupils with SEN without statements in all schools.
	(40) May include some pupils recorded at statutory assessment stage.
	(41) Excludes dually registered pupils.
	(42) Includes pupils with other providers.
	(43) Includes Direct Grant Nursery schools, City Technology Colleges and Academies.
	(44) Less than 5.
	Note:
	Totals may not appear to equal the sum of the component parts because numbers have been rounded to the nearest 10.
	Source:
	Annual Schools Census

Extended Schools

Eric Martlew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills What discussions she has had with local authorities about extended schools.

Beverley Hughes: Local authorities have a vital role to play in developing extended services as part of their work on Every Child Matters. We meet regularly with local authorities. Good progress is being made. All local authorities are establishing strategic plans within their children and young people plans. Schools will have a new legal duty to have regard to those plans when developing extended services. The national remodelling team, which is working with all local authorities, report the good progress that, thus far, 4,400 schools have expressed their willingness to develop extended services.

Carers

Hywel Francis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps her Department is taking to enhance the rights of carers.

Beverley Hughes: This Government are the first to recognise the contribution and concerns of all carers formally and is supporting carers on a number of fronts through the work of several departments.
	The Carers and Disabled Children Act 2000 strengthens the rights of carers to an assessment of their own needs as carers and involves a new right to a carer's assessment. It gives local councils mandatory duties to support carers by providing services to carers directly and in the provision of breaks, and as well, supporting carers by providing direct payment for carers' services. These direct payments can be made to families with disabled children and disabled young people aged 16 and 17 who have been assessed as needing services. Direct payments are cash payments made by the local authority to disabled young people or families, to enable them to purchase social care services that best meet their needs. The Health and Social Care Act 2001 made the offer of direct payments mandatory.
	The Carers (Equal Opportunities) Act 2004 builds on previous legislation and makes changes to the existing law around carers' services. There is now a duty on councils to inform carers of their right to an assessment of their needs. When assessing carers councils must also take into account whether the carer works or wishes to work, undertakes or wishes to undertake education, training or leisure activities. The Act also facilitates co-operation between authorities in relation to the provision of services that are relevant to carers. DfES worked closely with DH on this legislation.
	We are increasing funding for short breaks thorough yearly increases in the carer's grant. This is leading to increases in services for parents of disabled children. The carers grant is worth 185 million in 200506. Approximately 20 per cent. is spent on children's services, including services to disabled children and children and young people under 18 who are care-givers for other members of their family. In the last local government finance settlement, we confirmed our commitment to continue the carers grant until the end of the 200708 financial year.
	The DfES is also funding a national freephone helpline, run by Contact a Family (a national registered charity) to provide information for parents of disabled children on disability and to support them in contacting other families, developing local and national support groups and acting as a voice to raise awareness and campaign for families.

Childcare Bill

Mark Prisk: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what estimate her Department has made of the cost to local authorities in (a) England and (b) Hertfordshire of fulfilling the statutory duties included in part 1 of the Childcare Bill.

Beverley Hughes: The Government have already planned to increase expenditure on early years and child care from 958 million in 2004/05 to 1.8 billion in 2007/08, an increase of 55 per cent. A total of 4.4 billion will be available in 2007/08 when funding for the free early education offer is taken into account.
	This substantial increase in funding will provide the framework for support to local authorities as they take forward their responsibilities under the Bill. There is no need for additional money because:
	(a) Local authorities are already funded to play a lead role in this area. The provisions of the Bill merely formalise this lead role and establish it on a more long-term and sustainable basis;
	(b) Forthcoming guidance on the new duty to secure sufficient child care will indicate that ongoing subsidy of providers by local authorities is unlikely to satisfy the requirement of a reasonably practicable use of resources in the long-term.
	(c) The duty on local authorities to secure sufficient childcare will require them to shape and support the childcare market as a whole. In those instances where councils are providers of child care themselves, they will be able to recover their costs by charging fees. A substantial portion of that fee income would come from the Government via parents through the childcare element of working tax credit.
	(d) Mainstreaming of funding and the ability to link to existing performance management systems will carry a cost saving for local authorities as they will not have to report on separate targets or progress to central Government and central Government would no longer have to administer and police these targets.
	The vast majority of Sure Start funding will be routed through local authorities by 2008 and funding is already in place to deliver these services through the General Sure Start Grant (GSSG).
	Local authorities were advised of their funding allocation in winter 2005. This allocation will include capital and revenue for children's centres and Extended Schools, together with revenue for Sure Start Local Programmes.
	Hertfordshire were allocated 38,800,000 for 200608 including 20,242,000 in revenue. In 200406, Hertfordshire received 10,916,000 in revenue, therefore revenue funding has increased by 85 per cent.

Disabled People (Services)

Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment she has made of the continuity in delivery provided by different models of multi-agency transition from child to adult services for disabled people; and if she will make a statement.

Maria Eagle: The Prime Minister's Strategy Unit report Improving the Life Chances of Disabled People recommended that
	DFES should identify, by 2006, different models of multi-agency transition co-ordination and disseminate effective practice through existing or developing mechanisms, such as the Transition Information Network (TIN) or the proposed practice development toolkit.
	The Secretary of State has endorsed the report. The Department is currently finalising a contract to survey different transition models and to draw up practical guidance for professionals in the field. The work is scheduled for completion by the end of June 2006. It will take account of previous initiatives in this field, such as the Department's longitudinal study of transition planning and outcomes for young people with special educational needs, and of current work, such as the Department of Health-led work on transition to adult services for young people under long-term healthcare. The practical guidance will be disseminated widely on appropriate websites, such as the Transition Information Network.

Adult Education (Ealing)

Stephen Pound: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps she is taking to expand vocational education and training for adults in Ealing.

Phil Hope: The Learning and Skills Council (LSC) London West is responsible for the planning and funding of training to raise the skills of the workforce and potential workforce. It engages throughout the year with providers and employers to ensure that provision matches employer skills demands. There has been considerable recent work in the London borough of Ealing to ensure that said demands are met. This work includes the following:
	The opening, at Ealing and West London College, of the new Institute of Media. This is an 11.5 million development in central Ealing, linking directly with the BBC and other employers, providing vocational education for adults and funded by both the LSC and the college. There has also been substantial funding and redevelopment for vocational provision at the college's sites at Acton and Southall.
	The work towards Centre of Vocational Excellence (CoVE) status of Ealing, Hammersmith and West London College. Interim CoVE status has been achieved in the area of Media, and an application is being moderated currently for CoVE status in the area of Construction. Each of these will result in increased Level 2 and Level 3 vocational provision in the area.
	The allocation of over 3 million, from LSC London West's recent European Social Fund round, to providers based in Ealing which are delivering vocational training. There are also a large number of other providers who are working with Ealing residents to provide vocational training as a result of this funding round.
	Work with the London borough of Ealing's Adult and Community Learning team, to identify the vocational priorities within Ealing, and match the provision offered against these areas, resulting in increased opportunities in customer service and retail, among other sector areas.
	The organisation and promotion of Ealing's Year of Adult Learning 2005, including the promotion of vocational opportunities both in the borough and available to residents of the borough.
	Further detailed information is available from Peter Pledger, Executive Director of LSC London West.

Education Maintenance Allowance

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many young people in Gravesham have been granted an education maintenance allowance.

Maria Eagle: This is a matter for the Learning and Skills Council, which operates education maintenance allowances for the DfES and holds the information about take-up of the scheme. Mark Haysom, the Council's chief executive, has written to the hon. Member with the information requested and a copy of his reply will be placed in the House Library.
	Letter from Mark Haysom, dated 20 December 2005
	I am writing in response to your Parliamentary Question that asked how many young people in Gravesham have been granted an Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA)?
	Information on the number of young people who have applied, enrolled and received EMA is available at Local Authority level, but not at constituency level. The information relates to academic years.
	By the end of October 2005, 7,872 young people in the Kent Local Education Authority area had received one or more EMA payments in the academic year 2005/06 so far.
	During the academic year 2004/05, 5,317 young people in the Kent Local Education Authority received one or more EMA payments
	I hope this information is helpful and addresses your question. If you would like further details please contact Chris Bradley at the LSC National Office on 0114 207 4512 or christopher. bradley@lsc.gov.uk

Education Maintenance Allowance

John Battle: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many young people have been granted an education maintenance allowance in (a) Leeds, West constituency and (b) Leeds.

Maria Eagle: As outlined in my response to my right hon. Friend on 27 June 2005, Official Report, columns 121617W, in respect of a similar question about education maintenance allowance, this is a matter for the Learning and Skills Council, which operates education maintenance allowances for the DfES and holds the information about take-up of the scheme. Mark Haysom, the council's Chief Executive has written to my right hon. Friend with the information requested and a copy of his reply has been placed in the House Library.
	Letter from Mark Haysom, dated 22 December 2005
	I am writing in response to your Parliamentary Question that asked how many young people have been granted an education maintenance allowance in (a) Leeds West constituency and (b) Leeds?
	Information on the number of young people who have applied, enrolled and received EMA is available at Local Authority level, but not at constituency level. The information relates to academic years.
	By the end of November 2005, 5,440 young people in the Leeds Local Education Authority area had received one or more EMA payments in the academic year 2005/06 so far.
	During the academic year 2004/05, 5,651 young people in the Leeds Local Education Authority received one or more EMA payments. During academic year 2003/04 EMA was piloted in Leeds and 4,964 young people received EMA payments.
	I hope this information is helpful and addresses your question. If you would like further details please contact Chris Bradley at the LSC National Office on 0114 207 4512 or Christopher.Bradley@lsc.gov.uk

ERASMUS Students

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many non-UK national ERASMUS students have studied at UK institutions in each year since 1990; and what the total cost to her Department was of such students in each year.

Bill Rammell: The number of non-UK Erasmus students at UK institutions from 1995 onwards are provided in the following table. Data prior to 1995 is unavailable.
	
		Incoming Erasmus Students to UK 199596 to 200304
		
			  Number of non-UK Erasmus students 
		
		
			 199596 21,073 
			 199697 22,088 
			 199798 20,867 
			 199899 21,168 
			 19992000 20,667 
			 200001 19,130 
			 200102 17,645 
			 200203 16,976 
			 200304 16,601 
		
	
	Source:
	UK SOCRATES ERASMUS Council (UKSEC).
	As Erasmus students receive funding in the form of grants from the European Commission, there is no direct cost to the Department.

Further Education (Gravesham)

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which further education colleges in Gravesham will receive (a) a decrease and (b) an increase in their funding for adult education, not including for basic skills courses, in 200506 compared to the previous academic year.

Bill Rammell: The Department allocates funds for further education and training in the post-16 learning and skills sector, including 16 to 18 years participation, to the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) working through 47 local offices. The LSC was established in 2001 bringing the planning and funding of post-16 education together under one body within a framework set by Government.
	My Department does not hold figures at local or regional levels and this is a matter for the LSC. Therefore, LSC's Chief Executive, Mark Haysom has written to the hon. Member with further details and a copy of his reply has been placed in the House Library.
	Letter from Mark Haysom, dated 12 January 2006
	I write in response to your recent Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Education and Skills where you asked which further education colleges in Gravesham will receive (a) a decrease and (b) an increase in their funding for adult education, not including for basic skills courses, in 200506 compared to the previous academic year.
	The only FE College funded by the LSC in Gravesham is North West Kent College of Technology. In 200506 this college had its funding increased to almost 19.5 million, an increase of over 12 per cent. on 200405. However, within this increased funding, the amount spent on adult learning fell by about 0.5 per cent. to just under 4.7 million, which includes funding for adult skills for life learning.
	The overall amount of skills for life learning being funded in this FE college in 200506 is currently just over 0.7 million (an increase on the previous academic year of over 300 per cent.), but this learning can be in respect of either young people or adults. Therefore, whilst the majority of the 4.7 million funding for adult learning will not be skills for life learning, the precise amount will not known be known until the college submits student data after the year end.
	Trust this is helpful.

Qualifications and Curriculum Authority

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what discussions she has had with the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority on its location; and if she will make a statement.

Jacqui Smith: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to my hon. Friend the Member for Norwich, North (Dr. Gibson) on 9 January 2006, Official Report, column 428W.

Antisocial Behaviour Orders

Nick Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  how many antisocial behaviour orders have been issued in (a) Hillingdon and (b) each police division in Hillingdon in each of the last five years;
	(2)  how many prosecutions for breaches of antisocial behaviour orders the Crown Prosecution Service has brought in (a) Ruislip-Northwood constituency and (b) the London borough of Hillingdon.

Hazel Blears: Data held centrally on the number of antisocial behaviour orders (ASBOs) issued are not available below local authority area (LAA) level. A table is available on the Crime Reduction website at www.crimereduction.gov.uk giving the number of ASBOs issued in England and Wales where restrictions have been imposed in LAAs.
	The Home Office Court Proceedings Database holds breach proceedings only where there has been a conviction. These data are available at Criminal Justice System area level only.

Eurojust

Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the outcome of the Eurojust conference held in London in October.

Paul Goggins: The Eurojust conference on trafficking in human beings, held in London on 24 and 25 October last year under the UK presidency of the EU, was attended by investigators and prosecutors from across the EU. It provided an opportunity to share and exchange experience on national legislation, different investigative and prosecuting approaches and the sharing of information on trafficking networks. The conference also demonstrated the roles of Eurojust and Europol in improving co-operation and co-ordination between member states and raised awareness of other international measures to prevent and combat trafficking in human beings, including specialist training programmes supported by the EU.
	The effectiveness of a co-ordinated response to trafficking was demonstrated in an operation facilitated by Eurojust on 14 December last year when authorities conducted simultaneous houses searches and arrests in Turkey, Greece, Italy, France and the United Kingdom against a network trafficking human beings into the UK and other member states.
	The UK made action against trafficking a priority during its presidency of the EU and the adoption of an EU Action Plan by the Council of Ministers in December last year was a major achievement of our presidency. The plan aims to tackle trafficking at all stages of the process, focusing on priority areas where the EU, acting collectively, can make a real impact. Trafficking continues to be one of the Government's priorities. On 5 January 2006, we launched a public consultation document Tackling Human Trafficking-Consultation on Proposals for a UK Action Plan. The consultation period runs until 5 April 2005.

Murder

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the recent Law Commission recommendation concerning the reclassification of the offence of murder.

Hazel Blears: The Law Commission's consultation is the first part of the Government's review of the law of murder and is the start of a wider consultative process. The Government welcome the detailed analysis that the Law Commission has done and hopes that a wide range of organisations and individuals will respond to the consultation so that their views can be fully taken into account during this initial stage of the review.

Offenders (Prison Recalls)

Mark Oaten: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many offenders were recalled to prison as a result of breach of a post-custody licence in each of the last five years; and what proportion in each year was recalled for (a) violations of their licence and (b) fresh offences.

Fiona Mactaggart: Information on the number of offenders sentenced to four years or more who were recalled to prison as a result of a breach of post custody licence in each of the last five years can be found in tables 10.8 and 10.9 of the Home Office Statistical Bulletin: Offender Management Caseload Statistics 2004. Information on the number of offenders sentenced to less than four years who were recalled to prison in 200405 is provided at paragraph 10.12 of the same publication. Copies of this publication are available in the House of Commons Library.
	All offenders who have been recalled to prison have violated at least one of the conditions of their licence. Specific information on the reasons for the recall in each of the last five years of those released on parole is provided in the attached table. Data held centrally on non-parole cases recalled for further offences are not sufficiently complete or reliable for publication.
	
		Proportion of persons recalled from parole by reason for recall
		
			 Reason for recall 200001 200102 200203 200304 200405 
		
		
			 Further offences 40 27 45 42 37 
			 Being out of touch 32 23 26 29 28 
			 Hostel: failure to reside/  comply 15 9 9 8 10 
			 Other reasons 13 41 21 21 25 
			 Total number recalled 267 329 420 601 712

Organised Crime

David Gauke: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the finding of the HM Inspectorate of Constabulary report closing the gap that organised crime is widespread, vibrant and growing.

Hazel Blears: By looking at organised crime utilising additional data sets to those traditionally used to examine criminal markets such as counterfeit, contraband, illicit goods and immigration crime, Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) came to the conclusion that the complexity, resilience and reach of organised crime was growing.
	The closing the gap report provides a detailed and convincing case as part of the wider grounds for reconfiguring police service provision effectively to tackle all criminal and anti social threats. The issues in relation to organised crime were key drivers to the creation of the multi-disciplinary Serious and Organised Crime Agency that will come into existence in April 2006.
	This body will bring together the National Crime Squad, the National Criminal Intelligence Service and elements of Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs and the Immigration Service to develop an improved knowledge and understanding of the way criminal enterprises operate, and will intervene in a way that achieves a real and lasting impact.
	It will also work to share intelligence with, and offer support to, others engaged in law enforcement at home and overseas to foster a holistic approach to harm reduction. The creation of strategic forces will give the police service and partner agencies the capability and resilience to tackle organised crime cross-force or cross-basic command unit without impacting on neighbourhood policing: indeed it is the information and intelligence that flows from effective neighbourhood policing that will enable success at this level.

Police

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the likely impact on the individual and local identity of local policing of merging predominantly rural police authorities with authorities that are predominantly urban.

Hazel Blears: Analysis of responses received in December 2005 from Cumbria Police Force and Police Authority to the recommendations of Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC)'s report Closing the Gap is currently under way. Assessment of the implications for the balance between urban and rural areas will be part of that analysis. It would not be appropriate to comment in detail on the proposals for a particular area until that analysis is complete.

Police

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will extend the consultation period on the proposed merger of police authorities in England beyond 23 December.

Hazel Blears: We acknowledge that the timetable set for this review is tight. Given the stark findings of the Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) report, Closing the Gap it would have been negligent not to have responded quickly. The consultation process did not end with the submission of proposals on 23 December. Police forces and authorities will continue to consult locally with their communities and stakeholders on the best options for their areas. Similarly, no decisions will be made nationally without proper consultation across Government and with stakeholders at national level.

Police

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will take steps to ensure that Cumbria retains a minimum number of police officers not less than its current staffing level in the event of Cumbria Police Authority merging with one or more other authorities.

Hazel Blears: Analysis of responses received in December 2005 from Cumbria Police Force and Police Authority to the recommendations of Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC)'s report Closing the Gap is currently under way. It would not be appropriate to comment in detail on the proposals for a particular area until that analysis is complete. Nonetheless, our commitment to ensure that every neighbourhood has a dedicated neighbourhood policing team by 2008 remains absolute. The creation of strategic forces is complimentary to that commitment and intended to reduce abstractions of neighbourhood officers to deal with major incidents or investigations elsewhere.

Police

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the likely impact on Cumbria Police Authority's excellent rating for citizen-focused policing of a merger of the authority with other more urban police authorities.

Hazel Blears: Analysis of responses received in December 2005 from Cumbria Police Force and Police Authority to the recommendations of Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC)'s report Closing the Gap is currently under way. Assessment of the implications for citizen focused policing and the balance between urban and rural areas will be part of that analysis. It would not be appropriate to comment in detail on the proposals for a particular area until that analysis is complete.

Prisoners

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 7 November 2005, Official Report, column 57W, on prisoners, if he will provide a breakdown of the (a) offences and (b) number of each offence committed included in the 'Other' category.

Fiona Mactaggart: The types of offence included in the category of other are:
	Criminal damage
	Affray
	Violent disorder
	Threatening/disorderly behaviour
	Arson
	Cruelty to children
	Abduction
	Blackmail
	Kidnapping
	Perjury, libel,
	Breach of court order
	False imprisonment
	Bail Act Offences
	Assisting illegal immigrant
	Minor firearm offences
	Vagrancy Act offences
	Cruelty to animals
	Escaping lawful custody
	Making off without payment
	Criminal attempts
	Other indictable offences
	Held under Immigration Act 1971
	Other non criminal offences
	Offence not recorded
	The number of each offence committed and included in the other category is not readily available and it would incur disproportionate cost to provide it.

UK Passport Service (Fraud)

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many officials employed by the United Kingdom Passport Service have been (a) investigated, (b) prosecuted and (c) convicted of fraudulent issuing of passports in each passport office in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available.

Andy Burnham: The information requested on the number of people employed by the UK Passport Service (UKPS) who have been investigated, prosecuted and convicted of fraudulently issuing passports is given in the following table.
	The UK Passport Service takes very seriously any allegations or suspicions of fraud among members of staff. All such allegations or suspicions are investigated thoroughly and appropriate legal and disciplinary action taken where there are sound grounds to do so.
	
		
			  Investigated Prosecuted Convicted 
		
		
			 199596 1 1 (50)1 
			 199697 0 0 0 
			 199798 3 3 (51)3 
			 199899 4 1 (52)1 
			 19992000 2 0 0 
			 200001 4 0 0 
			 200102 4 1 (53)1 
			 200203 6 1 (53)1 
			 200304 16 0 0 
			 200405 9 0 0 
			 Total 49 7 7 
		
	
	(50) Glasgow
	(51) All London
	(52) Newport
	(53) London
	Notes:
	1. Prosecutions and convictions did not necessarily take place in the year an investigation commenced.
	2. These figures do not include any ongoing and current investigations which UKPS may be conducting.

Alcohol Misuse

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what assessment she has made of the adequacy of treatment services for alcoholics in Aylesbury Vale;
	(2)  what steps she is taking to tackle health inequalities in the area covered by the Aylesbury Vale Primary Care Trust.

Caroline Flint: I announced the launch of Alcohol Misuse Interventions: Guidance on developing a local programme of improvement as part of my keynote speech at Alcohol Concern's annual conference on 1 November 2005. The outcomes of this programme will enable local health organisations to focus on their decision-making on alcohol services at a local level. This will include identifying gaps in treatment pathways and mapping the best possible care pathways suited to need.
	Local recommendations regarding tackling health inequalities have been reviewed in the report of Director of Public Health for Vale of Aylesbury Primary Care Trust in November 2005.

Accident and Emergency Services

Adrian Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the target is for accident and emergency waiting times; and what percentage of patients has been seen within these targets in each hospital in Devon since 1997.

Caroline Flint: The accident and emergency (AE) four-hour waiting time target is now an ongoing operational standard. national health service trusts and primary care trusts (PCTs) are required to ensure that at least 98 percent., of patients in all their AEs, combined with any associated minor injuries units or walk-in-centres, are seen, treated and admitted or discharged within four hours of arrival. The Healthcare Commission measures PCT and trust performance annually against this standard. The table shows annual data held for trusts in Devon.
	
		Percentage of patients who spent less than four hours in AE from arrival to admission, transfer or discharge, 200203 to 200506
		
			 Org code Organisation 200203 200304 200405 200506 
		
		
			 5FT East Devon PCT   100.0 100.0 
			 5FR Exeter PCT   100.0 100.0 
			 5FV Mid Devon PCT   100.0 100.0 
			 5FQ North Devon PCT  99.7 100.0 100.0 
			 5CV South Hams and West Devon PCT  99.9 100.0 100.0 
			 5FY Teignbridge PCT  100.0 100.0 100.0 
			 5CW Torbay PCT  100.0 100.0 100.0 
			 RWV Devon Partnership NHS Trust 
			 RBZ Northern Devon Healthcare NHS Trust 94.1 95.1 95.1 97.0 
			 RH8 Royal Devon and Exeter NHS Foundation Trust 88.9 91.0 96.7 98.6 
			 RA9 South Devon Health Care NHS Trust 87.2 91.4 95.2 97.7 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Data are not available prior to 200203.
	2. 200203 data do not include Q1.
	3. 200203 data are for major AE departments only.
	4. East Devon PCT and Mid Devon PCT did not monitor AE performance in 200304.
	5. East Devon PCT, Mid Devon PCT and North Devon PCT did not monitor AE performance in Ql 200405, therefore, their 200405 data is for Q2-Q4.
	6. Exeter PCT did not provide any data in Ql 200405. Therefore, their 200405 data is for Q2-Q4.
	7. 200506 data are for the first two quarters of the year.
	Source:
	Department of Health dataset QMAE

Acute Trusts

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what volume of work for the private sector each acute trust in deficit in the 200405 financial year undertook in that year.

Liam Byrne: The value of private patient income for national health service trusts in deficit in 200405 is shown in the table.
	
		Private patient income for NHS trusts in deficit in 200405 000
		
			  200405 
			  Deficit Private patient income 
		
		
			 Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust 30,657 868 
			 St. George's Healthcare NHS Trust 21,656 2,409 
			 Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust 19,876 222 
			 Hammersmith Hospitals NHS Trust 17,819 16,658 
			 Royal West Sussex NHS Trust 15,483 2,529 
			 North West London Hospitals NHS Trust 11,744 6,609 
			 Southampton University Hospitals NHS Trust 11,579 3,400 
			 Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust 10,217 10,129 
			 Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust 10,115 2,813 
			 Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust 10,035 4,556 
			 West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust 9,978 3,723 
			 Queen Elizabeth Hospital NHS Trust 9,186 403 
			 Royal Wolverhampton Hospital NHS Trust 9,016 506 
			 South Tees Hospitals NHS Trust 8,898 2,355 
			 South Warwickshire General Hospitals NHS Trust 8,783 291 
			 East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust 8,557 2,432 
			 The Queen Elizabeth Hospital King's Lynn NHS Trust 8,499 10 
			 Bedford Hospital NHS Trust 8,480 990 
			 Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust 8,317 3,703 
			 Sandwell and West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust 7,806 172 
			 Cent Manchester/Manchester Child NHS Trust 7,727 2,179 
			 West Suffolk Hospitals NHS Trust 7,638 737 
			 The Lewisham Hospital NHS Trust 7,505 456 
			 Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust 6,443 1,963 
			 Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust 5,461 1,135 
			 Weston Area Health NHS Trust 5,154 1,687 
			 East Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust 4,983 3,696 
			 University College London Hospital NHS Found Trust 4,930 3,360 
			 United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust 4,913 2,552 
			 Queen Mary's Sidcup NHS Trust 4,608 87 
			 Scarborough and N.E. Yorks NHS Trust 4,506 1,571 
			 Heatherwood and Wexham Park Hospitals Trust 4,186 2,465 
			 North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust 4,106 420 
			 East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust 4,025 739 
			 West Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust 3,991 214 
			 Royal Nat Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Trust 3,793 4,095 
			 Good Hope Hospital NHS Trust 3,576 108 
			 Trafford Healthcare NHS Trust 3,490 57 
			 Airedale NHS Trust 3,288 1,238 
			 St. Mary's NHS Trust 3,219 10,675 
			 Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS Trust 3,217 15,772 
			 Lancashire Teaching Hospital NHS Found Trust 2,882 1,138 
			 King's College Hospital NHS Trust 2,734 9,661 
			 Bolton Hospitals NHS Trust 2,706 308 
			 Hampshire Ambulance Service NHS Trust 2,537 11 
			 Burton Hospitals NHS Trust 2,507 2,457 
			 Mid Essex Hospital Services NHS Trust 2,299 1,513 
			 Mid Staffordshire General Hospitals Trust 2,158 1,122 
			 Walsall Hospitals NHS Trust 1,845 103 
			 Kettering General Hospital NHS Trust 1,721 601 
			 Hinchingbrooke Healthcare NHS Trust 1,566 1,033 
			 Morecambe Bay Hospitals NHS Trust 1,548 183 
			 Southport and Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust 1,189 427 
			 Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust 1,146 208 
			 Buckinghamshire Mental Health NHS Trust 1,049 0 
			 Cambridge University Hospital NHS Found Trust 995 1,175 
			 Northern Devon Healthcare NHS Trust 991 1,099 
			 Royal United Hospital Bath NHS Trust 946 1,114 
			 George Eliot Hospital NHS Trust 786 424 
			 Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh NHS Trust 743 3,092 
			 Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Trust 557 12,496 
			 Devon Partnership NHS Trust 535 0 
			 West Dorset General Hospitals NHS Trust 448 411 
			 Cambs and Peterborough MH Partnership Trust 348 0 
			 Medway NHS Trust 279 134 
			 Birmingham Women's Healthcare NHS Trust 264 1,355 
			 Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch Found Trust 250 908 
			 West Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust 203 6 
			 Total 382,692 160,963 
		
	
	Note:
	These figures do not include foundation trusts.
	Source:
	Audited NHS trust summarisation schedules 200405.

Civil Servants

Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what proportion of each civil service grade in her Department is located in each region; what the average salary is for each grade; and if she will make a statement.

Jane Kennedy: The information requested is shown in the tables.
	Department of Health staff are based in England only.
	
		Table A: Number of Department of Health staff by region Full-time equivalent
		
			 Government office Administrative assistant Administrative officer Executive officer Higher executive officer Senior executive officer 
		
		
			 East Midlands 3.7 7 6.15 3.86 1 
			 Eastern GOR 0 3 1.53 2 1 
			 London GOR 5 178.81 285.14 218.03 231.79 
			 North East GOR 0 1 4 5.19 4 
			 North West GOR 0.48 2 2.72 5 2 
			 South East GOR 0 1 1 0 1 
			 South West 0 0 3 0 3.61 
			 West Midlands 1 0 7 2 4 
			 Yorks and Humbs 5.4 59.41 134.24 123.37 112.28 
			 Total 15.58 252.22 444.78 359.45 360.68 
		
	
	
		
			 Government office Grade 7 Grade 6 Senior civil servant level Grand total 
		
		
			 East Midlands 5 0.87 0.7 28.28 
			 Eastern GOR 2 2 4 15.53 
			 London GOR 239.89 113.95 194.22 1,466.83 
			 North East GOR 4 0 3 21.19 
			 North West GOR 4.63 1 3 20.83 
			 South East GOR 1 0 1 5 
			 South West 3.67 0 7.83 18.11 
			 West Midlands 1 0 4 19 
			 Yorks and Humbs 151.52 63.31 53.71 703.24 
			 Total 412.71 181.13 271.46 2,298.01 
		
	
	
		Table B: Proportion of Department of Health staff by region (percentage) Full-time equivalent
		
			 Government office Administrative assistant Administrative officer Executive officer Higher executive officer Senior executive officer 
		
		
			 East Midlands 0.16 0.30 0.27 0.17 0.04 
			 Eastern GOR 0 0.13 0.07 0.09 0.04 
			 London GOR 0.22 7.78 12.41 9.49 10.09 
			 North East GOR 0 0.04 0.17 0.23 0.17 
			 North West GOR 0.02 0.09 0.12 0.22 0.09 
			 South East GOR 0 0.04 0.04 0 0.04 
			 South West 0 0 0.13 0 0.16 
			 West Midlands 0.04 0 0.30 0.09 0.17 
			 Yorks and Humbs 0.23 2.59 5.84 5.37 4.89 
			 Total 0.68 10.98 19.36 15.64 15.70 
		
	
	
		
			 Government office Grade 7 Grade 6 Senior civil servant level Grand total 
		
		
			 East Midlands 0.22 0.04 0.03 1.23 
			 Eastern GOR 0.09 0.09 0.17 0.68 
			 London GOR 10.40 4.96 8.45 63.83 
			 North East GOR 0.17 0 0.13 0.92 
			 North West GOR 0.20 0.04 0.13 0.91 
			 South East GOR 0.04 0 0.04 0.22 
			 South West 0.16 0 0.34 0.79 
			 West Midlands 0.04 0 0.17 0.83 
			 Yorks and Humbs 6.59 2.75 2.34 30.60 
			 Total 17.96 7.88 11.81 100 
		
	
	
		Table C: Median salary for each grade
		
			 Grade Salary () 
		
		
			 Administrative assistant 12,732 
			 Administrative officer 16,559 
			 Executive officer 22,344 
			 Higher executive officer 27,410 
			 Senior executive officer 33,906 
			 Grade 7 44,854 
			 Grade 6 56,333 
			 Senior civil servant level 75,190 
		
	
	Note:
	The data shown in all tables are at 1 April 2005.

Dentistry

David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will list the locations of the dental access centres operating in England, broken down by primary care trust.

Rosie Winterton: The locations of the 53 dental access centres in England, which provide access to national health service dentistry across 85 sites, are shown in the table.
	
		
			 Strategic health authority Primary care trust Address 
		
		
			 Kent and Medway Ashford Ashford Dental Access Centre, Vicarage Lane Clinic, Vicarage Lane, Ashford, Kent, TN23 1NJ 
			 North Central London Barnet Dental Access Centre, Edgware Community Hospital, Burnt Oak Broadway. Edgware. Middlesex. HA8 OAD 
			 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire Bath and North East Somerset Bath Dental Access Centre, Bluecoat House, Sawclose, Bath, BA1 1EY 
			 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire Bath and North East Somerset Rush Hill Dental Access Centre, Lower Ground Floor, 20 Rush Hill, Bath, BA2 2QH 
			 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire Bath and North East Somerset Radstock Dental Access Centre, Leigh House, 1 Wells Road, Radstock, BA3 3RN 
			 Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Bedford The Dental Access Centre, 3 Kimbolton Road, Bedford, Bedfordshire, MK40 2NT 
			 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire Bristol North Dental Access Centre, Charlotte Keel Health Clinic, Seymour Road, Easton, Bristol, BS5 QUA 
			 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire Bristol South and West Bristol City Gate, Dental Access Centre, 33 Broad Street, Bristol, BS1 2EZ 
			 South East London Bromley Bromley Access Centre, The White House, 52 High Street, Pence, London, SE20 7HB 
			 Greater Manchester Bury Bury Dental Access Centre, 18 Parsons Lane, Bury, Lancashire, BL9 OJZ 
			 Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire Cambridge City Cambridge Dental Access Centre, Chesterton Medical Centre, Union Lane, Cambridge, CB4 IPX 
			 Kent and Medway Canterbury and Coastal Herne Bay Dental Access Centre, Queen Victoria Memorial Hospital, King Edward Avenue, Herne Bay, Kent, CT6 6EB 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside Central Cheshire Winsford Dental Access Centre, Winsford Health Centre, High Street, Winsford, Cheshire, CW7 2AS 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside Central Cheshire Northwich Dental Access Centre, Victoria Infirmary, Winnington Hill. Northwich. Cheshire. CW8 1AN 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside Central Liverpool Old Swan Dental Access Centre, Old Swan Health Centre. Crystal Close. Liverpool. L13 2GA 
			 Leicestershire, Northamptonshire and Rutland Daventry and South Northamptonshire Towcester Dental Access Centre, Towcester Health Centre, Swinneyford Road, Towcester, Northamptonshire, NN12 6HD 
			 Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire East Cambridgeshire Dental Access Centre PDS, 12 Church Mews, Wisbech, Cambridgeshire. PE13 1HL 
			 Kent and Medway East Kent Coastal Ramsgate Dental Access Centre, Newington Road Clinic, Newington Road, Ramsgate, Kent, CT11 OQU 
			 Kent and Medway East Kent Coastal Dental Access Centre, Dover Health Centre, Maison Dieu Road, Dover, Kent, CT16 1RH 
			 Trent East Lincolnshire Mablethorpe Dental Access Centre, The Health Centre, 97 Victoria Road. Mablethorpe. Lincolnshire. LN12 2AL 
			 North and East Yorkshire and Northern East Yorkshire Dental Access Centre, Goole Health Clinic, Bartholomew Avenue. Goole. DN14 6AW 
			 North and East Yorkshire and Northern East Yorkshire Cott1ngham Dental Access Centre, King Street, Cottingham. North Humberside. HU16 5OJ 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside Eastern Cheshire Eastern Cheshire Pct, Dental Access Centre, 89 Churchill Way, Macclesfield, Cheshire, SK11 GAT 
			 North Central London Enfield Dental Access Centre, North Middlesex Hospital, Sterling Way, Edmonton, London, N18 1QX 
			 South West Peninsula Exeter Exeter Dental Access Centre, Royal Devon  Exeter Hospital, Gladstone Road, Exeter, EX1 2ED 
			 Surrey and Sussex Guildford and Waverley Dental Access Centre, Buryfields Dental Clinic ,61 Buryfields, Guildford, Surrey, GU2 4AX 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside Halton Runcorn Dental Access Centre, 6768 Town Walk, Halton Lea, Runcorn, Cheshire, WA7 2GY 
			 West Midlands South Herefordshire Dental Access Centre, Gaol Street Clinic, Gaol Street, Hereford, HR1 2HU 
			 West Midlands South Herefordshire Mobile Unit, Dental Access Centre, Gaol Street Clinic, Gaol Street .Hereford, HR1 2HU 
			 West Midlands South Herefordshire Dental Access Centre, Old Bakery, Ewyas Harold, Hereford, HR2 OEX 
			 West Midlands South Herefordshire Dental Access Centre, Ross Road Health Clinic, Ross Road, Hereford, HR2 7RL 
			 West Midlands South Herefordshire Dental Access Centre, Kington Court, Community Care Centre. Victoria Road. Kington. Herefordshire. HR5 3BX 
			 West Midlands South Herefordshire Dental Access Centre, Leominster Community Hospital, South Street. Leominster. Herefordshire. HR6 8JH 
			 West Midlands South Herefordshire Dental Access Centre, Ledbury Community Health Centre. Market Street. Ledbury. Herefordshire. HR8 2AO 
			 West Midlands South Herefordshire Dental Access Centre, Ross-On-Wye Community Hospital, Alton Street, Ross-On-Wye, Herefordshire, HR9 SAD 
			 Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire Huntingdonshire Huntingdon Dental Access Centre, Hinchingbrooke Healthcare NHS Trust, Hinchingbrooke Parke, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, PE29 6NT 
			 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire Kennet and North Wiltshire Dental Access Centre, Chippenham Community Hospital, Rowden Hill Chippenham. Wiltshire. SN15 2AJ 
			 West Yorkshire Leeds North West Leeds Dental Access Centre, Lexicon House, Wilmington Grove, Leeds, LS7 2BQ 
			 Dorset and Somerset Mendip Dental Access Centre, Chantry House, Park Road, Frome, BAH 1EY 
			 Dorset and Somerset Mendip Glastonbury Dental Access Centre, The Health Centre, Wells Road. Glastonbury. Somerset. BA6 9DD 
			 Thames Valley Milton Keynes Dental Access Centre, Shipley Court, Marsh End Road, Newport Pagnell, Buckinghamshire, MK16 SEA 
			 Thames Valley Milton Keynes Westcroft Dental Access Centre, 16 Barnsdale Drive, Westcroft, Milton Keynes, MK4 4DD 
			 Thames Valley Milton Keynes Milton Keynes NHS Dental Access Centre, Eaglestone Health Centre, Standing Way, Eaglestone, Milton Keynes, MK6 5AZ 
			 Cumbria and Lancashire Morecambe Bay Barrow Dental Access Centre, Unit 5, Old Fire Station, Abbey Road, Barrow-In-Furness, Cumbria LA14 1XH 
			 Cumbria and Lancashire Morecambe Bay Dental Access Centre, Abbey Road Clinic, Abbey Road, Barrow-In-Furness, Cumbria, LA14 1XH 
			 Cumbria and Lancashire Morecambe Bay Morecambe Dental Access Centre, The Queen Victoria Centre. Thornton Road. Morecambe. LA4 5NN 
			 Northumberland, Tyne and Wear Newcastle Dental Access Centre, Benton House, Sandyford Road, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE2 1DD 
			 Northumberland, Tyne and Wear Newcastle Dental Access Centre, Benton House, Sandyford Road, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE2 ID 
			 Northumberland, Tyne and Wear Newcastle Dental Access Centre, Arthurs Hill Clinic, Douglas Terrace, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE4 6BT 
			 Northumberland, Tyne and Wear Newcastle Dental Access Centre, Geoffrey Rhodes Centre, Algernon Road, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE6 2UZ 
			 Thames Valley North East Oxfordshire Dental Access Centre, Kidlington Health Centre, Oxford Road, Kidlington, Oxfordshire, 0X5 1AP 
			 Leicestershire, Northamptonshire and Rutland Northampton Northampton Dental Access Centre, 2226 St. Leonards Road, Far Cotton, Northampton, NN4 8DP 
			 Thames Valley Oxford City East Oxford Dental Access Centre, Raglan House, 23 Between Towns Road, Oxford, OX4 3JH 
			 South West Peninsula Plymouth The Dental Access Centre, 1a Baring Street, Plymouth, PL4 8NF 
			 South West Peninsula Plymouth Dental Access Centre, Nuffield Clinic, Baring Street, Plymouth, Devon, PL4 8NQ 
			 Thames Valley Reading Dental Access Centre, Welfare Clinic, School Road, Tilehurst, Reading, RG31 5AS 
			 Greater Manchester Rochdale Rochdale Healthcare NHS Trust, Dental Access Centre, 90 Whitehall Street Rochdale Lancashire. OL12 OND 
			 Shropshire and Staffordshire Shropshire County Dental Access Centre, Shropshire Area Health Authority, Health Centre, Victoria Road, Oswestry, SY11 2PO 
			 Shropshire and Staffordshire Shropshire County Dental Access Centre, Tenbury and District Hospital, Worcester Road, Tenbury Wells, Worcestershire, WR15 SAP 
			 Thames Valley Slough Dental Access Centre, NHS Walk-In Centre, Upton Hospital, Albert Street, Slough, SL1 2BJ 
			 Dorset and Somerset Somerset Coast Bridgewater Dental Access Centre, Bridgwater Dental Clinic, Bridgwater Community Hospital, Salmon Parade, Bridgwater, TAG 5AH 
			 Dorset and Somerset Somerset Coast Burnham Dental Access Centre, War Memorial Hospital, Love Lane. Burnham-On-Sea. Somerset. TA8 1ED 
			 Dorset and Somerset South Somerset Dental Access Centre, Yeovil Dental Clinic, Summerlands Hospital Site, Preston Road Yeovil, Somerset, BA20 2BX 
			 West Midlands South South Warwickshire Dental Access Centre, Royal Leamington Spa Rehabilitation Hospital, Heathcote Lane, Warwick, CV34 6SR 
			 Thames Valley South West Oxfordshire Didcot Dental Access Centre, Didcot Hospital, Wantage Road, Didcot, Oxfordshire, 0X11 OAG 
			 West Midlands South South Worcestershire Dental Access Centre, Osbourne Road, Malvern, Worcestershire, WR14 1JE 
			 West Midlands South South Worcestershire Dental Access Centre, Malvern Health Centre (Mobile), Victoria Park Road. Malvern. Worcestershire. WR14 2JY 
			 West Midlands South South Worcestershire Dental Access Centre, Victoria Health Centre, Victoria Park Road. Malvern. Worcestershire. WR14 2JY 
			 Hampshire and Isle Of Wight Southampton City Southampton Dental Access Centre, 31 University Road, Highfield, Southampton, S017 1TL 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside St Helens Dental Access Centre, Central Dental Clinic, College Street, St. Helens, Merseyside, WA10 1UH 
			 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire Swindon Dental Access Centre, Swindon Health Centre, Carfax Street, Swindon, SN1 1ED 
			 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire Swindon Swindon Dental Access Centre, West Swindon Health Centre, Link Avenue, Swindon,SN5 7DL 
			 Shropshire and Staffordshire Telford and Wrekin Telford Dental Access Centre, Doseley Road North, Dawley, Telford, Shropshire, TF4 SAL 
			 Birmingham and The Black Country Walsall Teaching Dental Access Centre, Nhs Walk-In Health Centre, 1921 Digbeth, Walsall, WS1 1QZ 
			 Cheshire and Merseyside Warrington Warrington Dental Access Centre, Unit 78 The Mall, Cockhedge Shopping Centre, Warrington, WA1 10E 
			 Cumbria and Lancashire West Cumbria Egremont Dental Access Centre, St. Bridgets Lane, Egremont, Cumbria, CA22 2BD 
			 Cumbria and Lancashire West Cumbria Egremont Dental Access Centre, 55 Main Street, Egremont, Cumbria, CA22 2DB 
			 North and East Yorkshire and Northern West Hull Hull NHS Dental Access Centre, 7175 Jameson Street, Hull, East Yorkshire. HU1 3JF 
			 Trent West Lincolnshire Lincoln Dental Access Centre, 134 Dixon Street, Lincoln, LN67TU 
			 Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire West Norfolk Dental Access Centre, 6 King Street, Kings Lynn, Norfolk, PE30 1ES 
			 Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire West Wiltshire Westbury Dental Access Centre, Westbury and District Hospital. The Butts. Westbury. Wiltshire. BA13 3EL 
			 Surrey and Sussex Woking Area Bournewood Community NHS Trust, Woking NHS Dental Access Centre, Woking Community Hospital, Heathside Road, Woking, Surrey, GU22 7HS 
			 North and East Yorkshire and Northern Yorkshire Wolds and Coast Withernsea Dental Access Centre, Withernsea Hospital, Queen Street. Withernsea. HU19 2OB 
			 North and East Yorkshire and Northern Yorkshire Wolds and Coast Driffield Dental Access Centre, 8 Market Place, Driffield. North Humberside. YO25 GAP 
			 North and East Yorkshire and Northern Yorkshire Wolds and Coast Pocklington Dental Access Centre, 14 Market Place, Pocklington. York. YO42 2AR

Dentistry

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  if she will make a statement on access to NHS dental treatment in the Chorley and South Ribble primary care trust area;
	(2)  what steps she is taking to increase the number of dentists accepting patients on the NHS in the Chorley and South Ribble primary care trust area.

Rosie Winterton: The number of dental practices in Chorley and South Ribble primary care trust (PCT) area is 30, of which 11 have open personal dental service (PDS) contracts.
	Access has improved in 2005 and it is estimated that 51 per cent. of the local population are registered with an national health service dentist.
	The Government is reforming. NHS dentistry to create a locally focussed service which people can access where and when they need to. Major changes to improve access include:
	A new contractual framework for dentists to be introduced in April 2006, based on PDS pilots that better promote oral health, improve access to services and improve the quality of dentists' working lives;
	a programme which recruited the equivalent of 1,000 dentists by the end of October 2005 with the capacity to treat some 2 million people in areas of the country where access to dentistry needs improving;
	53 dental access centres across the country where people can be treated without an appointment and without needing to be registered;
	an advice service from NHS Direct to help people find a dentist who will provide NHS treatment.
	These major changes have been supported by an unprecedented level of Government investment which is set to increase by 19 per cent. over two years (200506 over 200304). This will result in an extra spend of over 250 million a year in primary care dentistry.
	From April 2006 under the new national contract, the PCT will be responsible for the commissioning of all dental services. Over the next two years (200607 and 200708) Chorley and South Ribble PCT will receive a cash increase of over 44.3 million (19.9 per cent.)

Departmental Assets

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make a statement clarifying what the 10 most valuable (a) movable and (b) immovable assets owned by her Department are.

Liam Byrne: The following table lists the top ten moveable and top ten immoveable fixed assets in the books of the Department of Health.
	
		Description of asset
		
			   
		
		
			 Immoveable fixed assets  
			 Harperbury Hospital, Radlett 76,700,608 
			 Richmond House, London 39,441,362 
			 St. James Hospital, Portsmouth 37,082,361 
			 West Park Hospital, Epsom 34,300,000 
			 Land-Warneford Hospital, Oxford 30,900,000 
			 Runwell Hospital, Wickford 24,459,790 
			 St Ebbas Hospital, Epsom 23,283,855 
			 Wellington House, London 18,677,010 
			 Little Plumstead Hospital, Little Plumstead 14,844,777 
			 Clamp Hill Hospital, Harrow, London 14,500,000 
			   
			 Moveable fixed assets  
			 Electronic Staff Records 200405-Country-wide-Asset Under Construction 79,852,333 
			 Software Licences from Microsoft 75,583,418 
			 Local Service Provider North West 57,310,442 
			 Spine Project-the core NHS Care Records Service to ensure highly available and highly resilient live Systems delivered in several phases 44,835,458 
			 Spine Project-the core NHS Care Records Service to ensure highly available and highly resilient live Systems delivered in several phases 21,250,000 
			 Software Licences-Oracle-National Programme For Information Technology 21,197,152 
			 Spine Project-the core NHS Care Records Service to ensure highly available and highly resilient live Systems delivered in several phases 20,887,632 
			 National Software Licences from Microsoft 17,290,037 
			 Picture Archive Communication System (PACS)-Assets Under Construction 10,127,000 
			 Connecting for Health-Electronic Booking-Assets Under Construction 8,000,000 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Immoveable assets are land and buildings and any plant and machinery that form an integral part of the land and buildings (such as central heating and air conditioning systems, for example)
	2. Moveable assets are any asset that is not an immoveable asset.
	3. The amounts are stated at net current cost adjusted to net current replacement cost as at 31 October 2005.
	Source:
	Department of Health Fixed Assets Register
	I regret the reply I gave to the hon. Member for Hemel Hempstead (Mike Penning) on 24 November 2005, Official Report, column 2272W was incorrect.

Departmental Jobs (Regional Distribution)

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many and what percentage of jobs in (a) her Department and (b) each (i) non-departmental public body, (ii) executive agency and (iii) other public body for which her Department is responsible are located in (A) England, excluding Greater London, and (B) Greater London.

Jane Kennedy: The figures are published in table D of Civil Service Statistics, which covers permanent staff numbers (full time equivalent). This information is available at the following address on the Cabinet Office's statistics website at:www.civilservice.gov.uk/management_of_the_civil_service/statistics/index.asp.
	The total number of staff employed by executive non-Departmental public bodies sponsored by the Department as at 31 March 2005 is recorded in table two of Public Bodies 2005, a copy of which is available in the Library and is also available on the Cabinet Office's website at www.knowledgenetwork.gov.uk/ndpb/ndpb.nsf. However, Public Bodies does not give the regional breakdowns sought and those data are not held by the Department. They could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	The number of staff employed in the Department's executive agencies as at 1 April 2004, including a regional analysis, is available in Civil Service Statistics 2004, published in February 2005. A copy is available in the Library and is also available on the Cabinet Office's website at: www.civilservice.gov.uk/management_of_ the_civil_service_statistics_2004_report/index.asp.

HIV/AIDS

Jeremy Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many children in England under the age of 16 years are diagnosed with HIV/AIDS; and if she will make a statement.

Caroline Flint: 903 children under the age of 16 are currently reported to be living with a diagnosis of HIV infection in England.
	Notes
	1. Data received and processed by 16 December 2005. 2. These data do not include diagnosed children who are known to have died or left the country.
	Source
	National Study of HIV in Pregnancy and Childhood, Institute of Child Health, London.

Hospices

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent estimate her Department has made of the effect on costs to the NHS of the contribution of the hospice movement.

Rosie Winterton: We acknowledge the valuable contribution the voluntary sector makes to the provision of palliative and specialist palliative care services. We have not made any estimate of the effect on costs to the national health service of the contribution of the hospice movement. However, data from the voluntary organisation Help the Hospices shows that the total expenditure from all adult voluntary hospices in England in 2004 was 286 million, of which 97.8 million was from national health service funding, an average of 34 per cent. of hospices' expenditure.

Hospital Hygiene

Gisela Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the merits of (a) compulsory wearing of facemasks by staff dealing directly with patients, (b) compulsory routine testing of all hospital staff for infections and (c) prohibition of hospital uniforms being worn offsite.

Jane Kennedy: National evidence based guidelines1,2 do not identify any clinical benefit from wearing facemasks to protect patients during routine ward procedures such as wound dressing or invasive medical procedures.
	Screening for healthcare associated infections is not routinely recommended for staff.
	It is for individual trusts to determine their own policies on the wearing of uniforms in and around the workplace.
	Many trusts have uniform policies in place for all staff stating that staff should not wear uniforms outside of the work place, unless working in the community or on official hospital business. Many also state that uniforms worn outside of the workplace should be covered with a full-length coat.
	Source:
	1 The epic project: developing national evidence-based guidelines for preventing healthcare association infections phase 1: guidelines for preventing hospital-acquired infections J Hosp Infect; 2001, 47(suppl) S3-S82 2 The epic project. Updating the evidence-base for national evidence-based guidelines for preventing healthcare associated infections in NHS hospitals in England: a report with recommendations. British Journal of Infection Control December 2004 Vol. 5 No. 6 Pellowe CM, Pratt RJ, Loveday HP, Harper P, Robinson M, Hones SRLJ

Influenza

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 10 November 2005, Official Report, column 666W, on influenza, whether she has plans to vaccinate poultry handlers against influenza of subtype A/H5N1 should a vaccine become available; and what plans she has to vaccinate poultry handlers against other forms of highly pathogenic avian influenza.

Caroline Flint: The Government have already announced its plans to purchase a small stockpile of new A/H5N1 vaccine that is currently being developed. Though it is intended that this will initially be used for research purposes, its use for poultry workers and others at serious risk of exposure to infection will be considered in the event of an outbreak of H5N1 in poultry flocks.
	There are no plans to vaccinate poultry handlers against other forms of avian influenza as there are no suitable vaccines available.
	In the event of an outbreak of avian influenza in poultry, seasonal human influenza vaccine will be offered to all those considered to be at risk of exposure to infection in addition to antiviral therapy.

Medical Staff (Attacks)

Alan Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases were recorded of attacks on (a) ambulance crews and (b) nurses in each year since 200304; how many there were in 200506; how many prosecutions were pursued in each case; and what sentences were imposed on those found guilty in each case where all proceedings are complete.

Liam Byrne: The information requested is not held centrally in the format requested. The national health service security management service (NHS SMS) is currently in the process of compiling and validating the first ever accurate figures for the levels of physical assault on NHS staff in 200405 for the acute, primary care and ambulance services; these will be will be released in the near future.
	Information relating to the number of physical assaults on staff working in NHS mental health and learning disability environments were released on 19 October 2005; these totalled 43,301 for the period 200405. In 200203 there were 59,992 violent incidents in these settings.
	The number of successful prosecutions involving physical assaults on NHS staff for 200405 was 759; a 15 fold rise over the 51 such prosecutions identified in 200203. In 200405 there were 100 successful prosecutions involving assaults on ambulance staff.
	No information on sentences imposed on offenders was collated for this period.

MRSA

James Brokenshire: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people have (a) successfully claimed and (b) tried to claim compensation (i) having contracted MRSA and (ii) having had a member of their family contract MRSA at an NHS hospital in each of the last five years.

Jane Kennedy: The information available in shown in the table.
	
		
			   Notification year (A) Number of successful claims made (i.e. damages paid) (B) Number of attempted claims made 
		
		
			 200001 11 19 
			 200102 21 50 
			 200203 33 91 
			 200304 30 104 
			 200405 16 109 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Column (A) shows the number of successful claims and column (B) shows the total number of attempted claims. It is not possible however, to provide a breakdown of the data into the question's categories (i) and (ii)as centrally held data does not differentiate between a patient and a member of their family claiming for negligence.
	2. The figures provided are in respect of all claims where MRSA is stated as an element of the claimit could be a cause or an injury. The contraction of the MRSA could be a non-negligent consequence of the negligent act.
	3. The number of claims are shown by notification year i.e. the financial year in which the Trust was first notified that a claim was going to be made. Because the notification date can be up to three years after the incident, the information in the table is subject to updates that might place additional claims in certain years.
	Source:
	NHS Litigation Authority

NHS Finance

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the cumulative break-even position as reported in the final accounts of (a) strategic health authorities, (b) primary care trusts, (c) NHS trusts and (d) other care trusts was in each of the last five years, broken down by Government Office region.

Liam Byrne: The break even cumulative position for national health service trusts for the period 200001 to 200405 is provided by Government Office region, in table one.
	
		Table 1: Cumulative position for NHS trusts 200001 to 200405 000
		
			 Government Office Region 200001 200102 200203 200304 200405 
		
		
			 North East 10,773 10,705 11,478 9,559 3,279 
			 North West 35,571 35,568 17,035 -38 -23,279 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 7,996 -4,318 2,988 -18,667 -51,214 
			 East Midlands 11,429 8,228 8,413 3,210 -2,653 
			 West Midlands 1,618 1,650 -15,740 -42,748 -85,820 
			 East -5,203 -23,657 1,268 -9,168 -69,817 
			 London -32,632 -3,012 -13,433 -12,826 -92,213 
			 South East -23,453 -42,084 -58,557 -89,708 -160,376 
			 South West 2,662 -16,180 -100,355 -115,333 -115,934 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. For accounting purposes, the figures include data for the five care trusts.
	2. The figures exclude NHS Foundation Trust data in 200405.
	Source:
	Audited summarisation schedules of the NHS trusts 200001 to 200405.
	The term cumulative break even does not apply to strategic health authorities (SHAs) and primary care trusts (PCTs).
	If a SHA or PCT reports a deficit position in one year, that deficit is recovered by deducting it from the resources available to them in the subsequent year, therefore their current performance represents their cumulative position.
	The final audited financial position for health authorities (HA) for the period 200001 to 200102 and for SHAs, formed in 200203, for the period 200203 to 200405, aggregated by Government office region is provided in table two.
	
		Table 2: Financial position of HAs and SHAs. 000
		
			 Government Office Region 200001 200102 200203 200304 200405 
		
		
			 North East 1,984 2,347 12,831 14,585 25,558 
			 North West 8,634 1,678 334 24,785 55,582 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 6,681 13,213 6,841 26,681 72,134 
			 East Midlands 3,135 9,927 13,948 11,001 23,203 
			 West Midlands 11,648 18,667 20,864 27,966 30,663 
			 East 37 20,836 10,147 26,684 19,273 
			 London 7,976 3,985 20,265 31,352 60,997 
			 South East 6,452 20,233 3,303 26,265 53,772 
			 South West 3,844 857 7,859 16,951 31,554 
		
	
	Note:
	SHAs came into existence in 200203. For 200001 and 200102 figures shown are for HAs.
	Source:
	Audited summarisation schedules of the health authorities 200001 and 200102 and audited summarisation schedules of the strategic health authorities 200203 to 200405.
	The final audited financial position for PCTs for the period 200001 to 200405, aggregated by Government office region is provided in table three.
	
		Table 3: Financial positions of PCTs, 200001 to 200405 000
		
			 Government Office Region 200001 200102 200203 200304 200405 
		
		
			 North East 0 352 7,191 -3,851 2,147 
			 North West 0 108 2,569 10,306 12,817 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 710 1,865 12,870 8,196 -5,427 
			 East Midlands 43 2,999 14,923 9,897 -2,338 
			 West Midlands 217 2,638 18,237 11,619 -5,216 
			 East 58 1,242 17,195 -18,153 -114,669 
			 London 220 788 10,639 -6,557 -53,502 
			 South East 310 4,232 15,494 4,091 -61,362 
			 South West 2,779 470 -6,334 -11,679 -44,842 
		
	
	Note:
	Primary Care Trusts came into existence in 200001, however Revenue Allocations were not made directly to them until 200304.
	Source:
	Audited summarisation schedules of the primary care trusts 200001 to 200405.

NHS Interpreting Service

John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will ensure provision of a comprehensive 24-hour interpreting service within the national health service.

Rosie Winterton: NHS Direct provides a 24-hour telephone service and there is full 24-hour availability of interpretation for all callers to the service. Other national health service trusts and bodies provide interpreting services on a local basis, and their availability in general reflects the opening hours of the services provided.

NHS Loans

John Pugh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what amount of interest is paid by NHS trusts on NHS loans;
	(2)  if she will list NHS acute trusts which borrowed money from the NHS to remain in balance in the 200405 financial year; and how much interest each was charged.

Liam Byrne: No national health service organisation has the legal power to make loans to any other NHS organisation or any other body.
	As NHS trusts do not have the power to lend money to other NHS organisations, there was no interest charged in respect of borrowings from the NHS.
	However, strategic health authorities (SHAs) can provide planned financial support. The recovery of this support is managed locally by the SHAs.
	The following table shows the planned support required by NHS trusts to achieve financial balance or better in 200405.
	
		NHS trusts requiring planned support in 200405 to achieve financial balance 000
		
			  200405 
			  Surplus/(deficit) Planned support 
		
		
			 Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust 13,581 26,377 
			 North Bristol NHS Trust 2,402 20,026 
			 Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust 1,580 18,700 
			 Essex Rivers Healthcare NHS Trust 293 13,972 
			 Ashford and St. Peter's Hospitals NHS Trust 61 13,000 
			 St. Helens and Knowsley Hospitals NHS Trust 9 12,000 
			 Barnet and Chase Farm Hospitals NHS Trust 0 11,200 
			 Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust 87 9,700 
			 Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust 178 8,800 
			 North Cheshire Hospitals NHS Trust 84 7,931 
			 Royal Surrey County Hospital NHS Trust 262 6,540 
			 North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Trust 66 6,500 
			 Manchester Mental Health and Social Care Trust 89 6,322 
			 East Cheshire NHS Trust 24 6,000 
			 The Whittington Hospital NHS Trust 1,998 6,000 
			 Rob Jones and A Hunt Orthopaedic NHS Trust 0 5,581 
			 Isle of Wight Healthcare NHS Trust 12 5,400 
			 Wirral Hospital NHS Trust 25 5,400 
			 Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust 2 5,000 
			 Epsom and St. Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust 588 4,600 
			 West Yorkshire Ambulance Service Trust 20 4,127 
			 Barnet, Enfield and Haringey MH NHS Trust 849 4,100 
			 Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust 156 3,970 
			 North Cumbria Acute Hospitals NHS Trust 13 3,829 
			 Pennine Acute Hospitals NHS Trust 1,398 3,500 
			 Aintree Hospitals NHS Trust 7 3,200 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Trust 192 3,000 
			 Milton Keynes General Hospital NHS Trust 943 2,900 
			 North East London Mental Health NHS Trust 151 2,700 
			 Winchester and Eastleigh Healthcare NHS Trust 76 2,678 
			 Royal Liverpool Broadgreen University Hospital Trust 0 2,643 
			 Tees East and North Yorkshre Ambulance Service NHS Trust 0 2,600 
			 North Hampshire Hospitals NHS Trust 94 2,575 
			 The Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Trust 31 2,100 
			 Birmingham and Solihull MH NHS Trust 0 2,000 
			 Worthing and Southlands Hospitals Trust 51 2,000 
			 North West Surrey MH NHS Partnership Trust 7 1,614 
			 Worcestershire MH Partnership NHS Trust 243 1,450 
			 Avon and Wiltshire MHP NHS Trust 43 1,200 
			 East Kent Hospitals NHS Trust 453 1,200 
			 Five Boroughs Partnership NHS Trust 38 1,153 
			 Camden and Islington MH and Social Care Trust 494 1,000 
			 Portsmouth Hospitals NHS Trust 882 1,000 
			 Surrey Oaklands NHS Trust 116 700 
			 Whipps Cross University Hospital NHS Trust 7 568 
			 Westcountry Ambulance Services NHS Trust 35 468 
			 East Sussex County Healthcare NHS Trust 9 273 
			 Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Trust 7 209 
			 Total 27,656 257,806 
		
	
	Note:
	These figures do not include NHS foundation trusts.
	Source:
	Audited NHS trust summarisation schedules 200405.

NHS Trusts

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the (a) total capital revenue expenditure and (b) capital and revenue IT expenditure was for NHS trusts in England in the last year for which figures are available.

Liam Byrne: The information is given as follows. Figures do not include expenditure on the national programme for information technology funded centrally by the Department.
	
		National health service trust expenditure in England 200405
		
			  000 
		
		
			 Total capital expenditure 2,008,839 
			 Total revenue expenditure 36,033,813 
			 Total capital expenditure on information  technology (IT) 130,037 
			 Total revenue expenditure on IT (58)Not yet available 
		
	
	(58) Revenue expenditure on IT is reported through an annual national survey of NHS bodies. Collation and analysis of survey returns has not yet been finalised. The equivalent figure for 200304 was 567,017.
	Note:
	Data for NHS foundation trusts is not included in 200405.
	Source:
	Audited NHS trust summarisation schedules 200405.

NICE Guidance

Andrew Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the total estimated cost has been of issuing National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence guidance; and how much of that figure is accounted for by the cost of issuing (a) clinical guidelines and (b) technology appraisals.

Jane Kennedy: The cost to the national health service of implementing National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) technology appraisal guidance up to July 2005 is estimated to be 838 million. There is no data available for the cost of implementing NICE clinical guidelines.
	It is not possible to disaggregate accurately the cost of producing NICE appraisals and clinical guidelines. NICE'S total budget for 200506 is 29.3 million.

Nurses

Jeremy Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many full-time equivalent nurses have been employed in the NHS in each of the last five years, broken down by region; and if she will make a statement.

Liam Byrne: The requested information is shown in the table.
	The number of full-time equivalent qualified nurses has increased by 48,453 (18 per cent.) since 2000.
	
		All NHS qualified nursing, midwifery and health visiting staff, including practice nurses employed by unrestricted principals and equivalents (UPEs)(59), in England by Government office region and strategic health authority area as at 30 September each year Full-time equivalent
		
			 GOR code GOR name strategic health authority SHA code 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 
		
		
			  England  266,987 277,334 291,285 304,892 315,440 
			 A North east total  16,702 17,326 17,853 18,374 18,995 
			  County Durham and Tees Valley Q10 7,000 7,136 7,278 7,642 7,896 
			  Northumberland, Tyne and Wear Q09 9,702 10,190 10,574 10,733 11,099 
			 
			 B North west total  41,404 42,436 45,230 46,837 49,534 
			  Cheshire and Merseyside Q15 13,853 14,556 16,120 16,837 17,462 
			  Cumbria and Lancashire Q13 10,867 11,031 11,766 11,981 13,590 
			  Greater Manchester Q14 16,684 16,849 17,344 18,019 18,481 
			 
			 D Yorkshire and the Humber total  28,436 29,089 30,822 32,763 32,739 
			  North and East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire Q11 7,172 7,251 8,094 8,381 8,706 
			  South Yorkshire Q23 8,431 8,655 9,204 9,541 9,858 
			  West Yorkshire Q12 12,833 13,183 13,523 14,840 14,175 
			 
			 E East Midlands total  20,379 21,086 21,935 22,747 23,819 
			  Leicestershire, Northamptonshire and Rutland Q25 7,242 7,321 7,520 7,650 8,166 
			  Trent Q24 13,137 13,766 14,415 15,097 15,654 
			 
			 F West Midlands total  28,032 29,469 31,121 32,137 33,322 
			  Birmingham and The Black Country Q27 13,691 14,337 15,428 15,909 16,591 
			  Shropshire and Staffordshire Q26 7,247 7,825 8,102 8,376 8,438 
			  Coventry, Warwickshire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire Q28 7,095 7,308 7,590 7,852 8,293 
			 
			 G East of England total  23,758 25,214 26,479 27,382 29,485 
			  Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire Q02 6,074 6,680 7,010 7,165 7,439 
			  Essex Q03 6,464 6,703 7,140 7,267 7,635 
			  Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire Q01 11,219 11,830 12,329 12,950 14,410 
			 
			 H London total  44,727 46,870 49,344 52,825 54,406 
			  North Central London Q05 9,366 9,991 10,052 10,796 11,106 
			  North East London Q06 7,554 8,072 8,407 9,740 9,975 
			  North West London Q04 10,889 11,944 12,857 13,120 13,375 
			  South East London Q07 9,790 9,758 10,600 11,336 11,777 
			  South West London Q08 7,129 7,105 7,428 7,833 8,173 
			 
			 J South east total  36,238 38,248 40,048 42,121 42,446 
			  Hampshire and Isle of Wight Q17 8,154 8,712 9,090 9,893 9,885 
			  Kent and Medway Q18 6,664 6,806 7,100 7,448 7,617 
			  Surrey and Sussex Q19 11,968 12,627 13,351 13,691 13,780 
			  Thames Valley Q16 9,452 10,103 10,506 11,089 11,164 
			 
			 K South west total  25,531 26,630 28,008 29,118 29,277 
			  Avon, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire Q20 11,419 11,800 12,521 13,228 13,434 
			  Dorset and Somerset Q22 5,578 5,877 6,216 6,515 6,532 
			  South West Peninsula Q21 8,535 8,953 9,272 9,375 9,311 
			  Special health authorities and other statutory bodies  1,779 966 444 588 1,419 
		
	
	(59) UPEs include GMS Unrestricted Principals, PMS Contracted GPs and PMS Salaried GPs. 20002001 data is estimated based on 2002 organisational structure.
	Sources:
	Health and Social Care Information Centre Non-Medical Workforce Census
	Health and Social Care Information Centre General and Personal Medical Services Statistics

Skipton House Refit

Michael Penning: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 24 November 2005, Official Report, column 2272W, on departmental assets, if she will break down the expenditure on the Skipton House refit by category listed; and if she will make a statement on the purchase of computers in Quarry House.

Liam Byrne: The breakdown of the expenditure on the Skipton House refit by category is shown in the following table.
	
		
			   
			  Net current replacement cost 
		
		
			 General enhancement expenditure 3,504,096.00 
			 Blinds 26,957.00 
			 Carpets 24,165.00 
			 Signage 19,857.00 
			 Catering/servery equipment 75,183.00 
			 Total net current replacement cost 3,650,258.00 
		
	
	Source:
	The detail of the Skipton House refit asset was obtained from Strategy and Business Development, Group Business Team, Estate Services section of the Department, at Skipton House.
	The Department's policy is to refresh personal computers (PCs) on a rolling basis and the PCs in Quarry House referenced in the reply on 24 November 2005, Official Report, column 2272W were included in a scheduled refresh programme. PCs are replaced when they are at least three years old and unable to meet the needs of the business.

Waiting Times

Gordon Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the (a) average and (b) target waiting times to see a (i) consultant psychiatrist and (ii) psychologist were in (A) Blackpool, (B) the North West and (C) England in each of the last five years for which figures are available.

Rosie Winterton: The Department does not routinely collect information on waiting times for appointments with psychologists as waiting time targets apply to consultant-led services only.
	The maximum waiting time for a first out-patient appointment with a psychiatry consultant is 17 weeks. From the end of 2005, the target will reduce to 13 weeks. The maximum waiting time for in-patient treatment under the care of a psychiatry consultant is nine months. From the end of 2005, the target will reduce to six months.
	Information on the estimated average waiting time from general practitioner written referral to first out-patient appointment with a psychiatry consultant in Blackpool primary care trust (PCT), Cumbria and Lancashire strategic health authority (SHA) and England is shown in the following table. This information is not being captured at regional level. Therefore, such information for the North West is not available.
	
		Estimated average waiting time from general practitioner written referral to first out-patient appointment, September 2001 to September 2005. Commissioner based
		
			  Effective length of wait from receipt of GP written referral request to first out-patient attendance (weeks) 
			 Quarter 04 413 1317 1721 21 plus Median wait 
		
		
			 Blackpool PCT   
			 September 2002 93 44 12 1 0 3.2 
			 September 2003 89 49 4 5 0 3.3 
			 September 2004 62 46 0 1 0 3.5 
			 September 2005 18 32 15 0 0 8.2 
		
	
	
		Effective length of wait from receipt of GP written referral request to first out-patient attendance (weeks)
		
			 Quarter 04 413 1326 26 plus Median wait 
		
		
			 Cumbria and Lancashire SHA   
			 September 2001 683 533 139 34 4.2 
		
	
	
		Effective length of wait from receipt of GP written referral request to first out-patient attendance (weeks)
		
			 Quarter 04 413 1317 1721 21 plus Median wait 
		
		
			 September 2002 546 402 46 25 35 3.9 
			 September 2003 547 700 43 29 0 5.5 
			 September 2004 670 485 75 20 0 3.7 
			 September 2005 105 91 27 3 0 4.8 
		
	
	
		Effective length of wait from receipt of GP written referral request to first out-patient attendance (weeks)
		
			 Quarter 04 413 1326 26 plus Median wait 
		
		
			 England  
			 September 2001 14,590 11,443 2,067 579 3.9 
		
	
	
		Effective length of wait from receipt of GP written referral request to first out-patient attendance (weeks)
		
			 Quarter 04 413 1317 1721 21 plus Median wait 
		
		
			 September 2002 11,052 8,174 1,122 607 450 3.9 
			 September 2003 12,204 9,562 695 261 13 3.7 
			 September 2004 10,454 7,813 833 78 2 3.7 
			 September 2005 4,170 2,174 1,064 38 0 3.6 
		
	
	Notes:
	1. Due to small numbers, the calculation of the median wait is prone to fluctuation at PCT and SHA level.
	2. Care should be taken when interpreting these figures.
	3. Waiting times apply to consultant-led appointments only. Services in many areas are now run by multi-disciplinary teams.
	4. PCTs came into existence from April 2002.
	Source:
	Department of Health form QM08R